Rebirth (Moved to FimFiction)
by RattPitt
Summary: Young Mark Cleveland dies in an accident and is sent to the land of Equestria. Here, he must get used to his new life and land. Rated M for language, violence, non-clop romance, and ponies. The events of Season 5 and onward won't be occurring in this story. This story has been canceled and moved to FimFiction(dot)net. There's a link to it on my profile page.
1. Last Night on Earth

**A/N: This is my first story submission and my first real attempt at writing a full story with a beginning and end. Let me know what you think of it in a review.**

"Be glad you've got me…" I mutter to my best friend and roommate, Dana, now passed out from drinking too much (again). We aren't dating, by the way. Everybody seems to think that. The main reason is because she's a lesbian.

I set her in the passenger's seat of my car. I struggle a bit to put the seat belt on her. She's got a bit of vomit coming from her mouth already. I guess seven beers in 45 minutes will do that. Knowing Dana, she probably snuck in a few more when I wasn't looking. After wiping off the vomit, I remind myself to get her to stop this habit of hers.

I move over to the driver's side. I've been having to drive Dana for a little over a year now. I start up the car and turn on the radio. The digital clock on the dashboard says 11:56 PM.

I drive down the street towards our current home. I'm really tired and there usually isn't too much traffic on this route, so I don't bother putting my own seatbelt on. On the radio, the song Detroit Rock City by Kiss starts to play. It's always been a favorite song of mine, so I turn it up. Maybe it would help wake Dana up?

A red light forces me to stop the car. After a few seconds, the car forces itself forward. I barely get a chance to look at the rear view mirror to get a look at the car that hit mine. My right arm thrusts itself towards Dana to keep her still, even though she has the seat belt on. I look to my left to see a truck T-bone my fragile car. Pain pierces into my entire left side and glass digs into me.

My car flips onto its roof. I reach to my face to take out some pieces of glass. The pain just from moving my arm tells me that it's broken. I look around. My eyes drift to Dana. There's barely any visible damage to her, except for a few cuts on her face. Cuts that would heal quickly, unlike my arm.

I reach for my door with my uninjured arm, but it doesn't open. The impact from the truck probably broke something in the door. I kick the door a few times, but nothing happens.

I start to kick the window. It shatters after a few kicks. I'm in a terrible position to get out of my car. Putting the seat belt on would have been a good idea in hindsight.

The passenger side door opens and something pulls Dana out of the car. I turn to see a girl with black hair and white clothes. She smiles at me.

* * *

Suddenly, a large flash blinds me and my vision fades to white. I see a faint gray silhouette. I try to move my head, but the silhouette doesn't move. I can't tell if I didn't move or if I did and the silhouette moved with me.

"Mark Cleveland." A voice calls out from the silhouette. I don't recognize the voice but can tell it belongs to a female. "I am Epona." Epona? I've heard that word somewhere. "I am the goddess of harmony, honor, nobility, and peace." A goddess. I'm definitely dreaming.

"Well, Epona, why are you here?" I ask, deciding to go along with what my dream wants me to do.

"I'm here to offer you a chance." Epona says. She notices my hesitation to respond. "A chance at...rebirth, if you will. A new life." I'm caught off guard by this. Her statement briefly stuns me, but I come to my senses.

I chuckle a bit. "A new life? I don't believe you. I'm not dead or whatever."

"Yes you are, Mark Cleveland. Your accident killed you. You are dead."

"Prove it." I ask, still not believing the one that claims to be a goddess.

"Your friend survived the accident." Epona says without any hesitation.

This takes me off guard. How could she know if Dana survived? I don't want to believe that I'm really dead, but I have to. I look at where the voice of Epona is coming from. The silhouette still doesn't move. "Y-You're telling the truth. I'm dead." My voice is faint from this sudden revelation.

"To repeat myself, I'm here to offer you a chance at a new life. If you accept, you will be sent to my home world." Epona says. A light comes from above her head. The light illuminates the area so I can clearly see her. She's a large white unicorn. Her mane is long, flowing, and black that looks like a dress. She looks like that girl I saw after the crash. I notice what looks like a tattoo with a sword and shield on her...thigh? Flank? Whatever it's called. The location of the light keeps me from getting a good look at the tattoo. It takes me some time to notice the wings on her side that blend into her coat. I stare at the unicorn with wings. "Do not be alarmed, Mark Cleveland. There will be many more like me in your new home, should you choose to accept my offer."

"A world with unicorns? What the hell…" I say. The latter sentence comes out of my mouth on its own.

Epona looks at me with what I assume to be disgust. "I am no mere unicorn. I am an alicorn." She flaunts her wings. "Not all of my kin will be alicorns. There are indeed some, but most will be unicorns, pegasi, or earth ponies."

I understood some of what she said. "Uh...Okay?"

The alicorn sighs. "But yes, you have died in your world." She seems to stutter a bit on the word 'died', as if she doesn't understand what it means. "I am giving you the chance to live a new life in my world." The way she said that makes it seem like she made the planet she wants to send me to.

"Wait, you said you were a goddess, right?" She nods. "Does that mean there are others? Just the way you said it makes it seem like there are."

Epona nods. I think I see her frown. "Yes, there are other deities within my pantheon. Many have been lost in time, but some remain. I am one of them." Alright, that works as an answer. "Do you accept my offer?"

The alicorn seems impatient. Since I apparently died and I've never had any beliefs of afterlife, I decided quickly. "I accept."

Epona straightens her body. Her horn lights up quickly. My vision fades to white.

* * *

When I wake up, it feels like I haven't had anything to drink in a week. My throat is dry as a desert. I look around. There are trees all around me, except the clearing to my left. The trees are short enough for me to clearly see the blue sky. There isn't a single cloud.

The usual sounds of my home aren't there. No cars driving. No people talking. No construction. Nothing. Just silence. The silence is deafening. I'm used to the sounds of Seattle.

Determined to find some sort of life besides plants and insects, along with sound, I stand up. A wave of vertigo surrounds me and I nearly fall over. I catch myself on a tree and almost throw up. I try to remember what happened for me to get here.

The car crash is the first thing to enter my mind. The memory lingers in my thoughts for what feels like hours. The horrible memory eventually shifts to black, then the words from that… winged unicorn. Alicorn. Whatever.

It sent me to this place. It didn't even bother telling me the name of this place. The name of the creature returns to my mind. Epona.

My legs wobble as they try to move to another tree. It takes some time to get my legs to work normally.

I empty my pockets to see if I had anything with me. I did, and everything I had with me during the car crash was with me now. The solar charging iPod that my brother gave me, headphones, a small foldable knife, my wallet, some hard candies, a cigarette lighter, and a pen. I put the headphones in my ears and turn on my iPod. The first song to play is Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song. How fitting.

It slowly dawns on me that I'm in the middle of a forest with no exit in sight. How far away is civilization? Is there even any in this place?


	2. Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

**A/N: Here's the second chapter of Rebirth. I'm not going to be updating daily. I don't have a schedule yet, but it'll probably be every Saturday or Sunday, with the occasional special update. I'll also be responding to reviews in the author's notes.**

**Kyguy** **\- It's always good to know that someone likes my stories. Thanks for the review.**

I run off in a random direction, not having any idea where it would take me. My lungs struggle for air and I eventually stop. I look around. Nothing about the area seems to have changed. "Son of a bitch." I say out loud. I keep wandering the thick forest. As with before, nothing about the landscape seems to change. I've got to be close to some sort of civilization. Of course, there's that saying… Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Eventually, I decide to stop walking and just sit next to a tree. I rub my temple in frustration. I pick up a small rock next to me and throw it as hard as I can towards a tree. The rock misses and I hear a soft 'Ouch!' coming from behind it. Despite it being quiet, it makes me.

After a second of hesitation, I stand up and move towards the sound.

My eyes rest themselves on a pony, one like Epona but smaller. This one has cream colored fur and a long, straight pink mane. Her head is turned away from me. The pony has wings and what appears to be three butterflies on her flank. "Ow…" The pegasus rubs her temple.

Not only did I just hit a mythical creature with a rock, the damn thing just talked.

Needless to say, it's a little more than shocking. It takes time for me to say something. "Are you okay?"

The pegasus flinches, but quickly recovers. "Y-Yeah. S-Something hit me in the head." Good. She speaks English. She rubs her head again. Surprisingly, there was no blood. I threw that rock pretty hard. She turns to look at me and gasps. "W-What a-a-are you?"

The question didn't surprise me, but I wish the pegasus worded it differently. The question made me feel like I was sent to a distant planet. It might be true. "I'm a human."

The pegasus stares at me in astonishment. "Wow… I've never heard of a human before." She looks at the rock that hit her. "Did you throw this at me?"

"On accident. I meant to hit a tree, but I missed. I'm sorry."

She smiles at that. "Oh, that's okay. You don't have to be sorry about accidents." Her response makes me smile. She's already nicer than most people I know, and I don't even know her name.

"Thank you. What's your name?" I ask in hopes of getting someone to show me around the area.

"F-Fluttershy." The pegasus stutters softly.

If names like that are common around here, it will be difficult to learn everybody's names. "I'm Mark. Mark Cleveland." I look around at the forest. There's still no obvious exit. "Can you point me towards a town? I have no idea where we are."

Fluttershy lifts her leg and points her hoof in the direction behind her. "My home town, Ponyville, is in that direction. We're just inside the Everfree Forest. Be glad you aren't deep inside. It's dangerous and scary in there."

Ponyville… I assume it's named for the abundancy of ponies and not humans. I remember hearing about an old show from twenty years ago involving ponies. If Epona sent me to live in that show, I'm going to be a little bit pissed off.

I rub my temple due to a headache that just arrived. The idea that I'm the only human here stabs into my mind.

"A-Are you okay?" Fluttershy asks. My pain must be really obvious.

I hold onto my head and lean against a tree. "I don't think so. It's just…" I trail off. There's no way she would believe what happened to me. "I… I think I need a doctor."

Fluttershy trots up to me. "Can you walk?"

I nod. "Probably not very far." My headache gets worse by the second.

Fluttershy looks at the ground, then quickly back to me. "Um… I don't t-think we'll get to the hospital soon…" She looks around the area. "D-D-Do you want to stay a-at my home?" She stutters and seems to blush faintly. I nod again. Fluttershy lets out a sigh of relief.

I follow her to her home, which is fortunately close to where we were. Her house is like a giant bush. It seems to be something you'd expect to see in a fairy tale. To avoid hitting my head on the way inside, I duck while entering her home. Fluttershy's home is larger on the inside than I expected. It makes sense, though, seeing that she is a pegasus. Creatures with wings tend to need room to fly around.

I sit on her soft, yet small, couch. It's comfortable, like it could be a bed. "Thank you, Fluttershy. I didn't want to spend the night in the forest." I say.

The pegasus smiles kindly. "I'd do it for anypony. I couldn't just leave a creature unprotected in the cold." She says, then frowns. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"What do you mean?"

The pegasus rubs her foreleg. "I… I said 'creature'. I didn't mean to…" She looks like a kid that just broke their mother's expensive vase.

So that's what she meant. "It's okay. I didn't even catch you saying that." Fluttershy still looks sorry. "You don't have to worry about that. It was an accident, right? You don't have to be sorry about accidents."

Fluttershy smiles at that. It always feels good to make people feel better. Well, ponies, in this case. It still feels pretty good.

The two of us talk a bit. I give her some history of myself, but avoid my last moments in my previous life. She also gave me a brief tour of her house.

The day comes to a close. Fluttershy goes to her room and I sleep right there on the couch. It takes a long time for me to fall asleep. The fact that I'm likely surrounded by talking horses. The fact that I'm in a new world. The fact that I missed the chance to say 'I come in peace.'

* * *

"Mark Cleveland." A vaguely familiar voice wakes me from my slumber. I identify it as Epona's. "It is a good thing that you have arrived safely in Equestria. I have not sent any humans to my planet in many millenia. I feared that I would have made a mistake with your form." Epona says, leaving the implications where they should stay.

I attempt to nod, but can't move. I notice that I don't appear to have a body. Maybe I still am dreaming? "Yeah, it's good to have a perfectly working body. Well, besides the headache, I mean."

Epona looks at me as if I spoke in a different language. "Headache?"

That surprises me. Well, if she truly is a goddess, I guess she wouldn't know what a headache is. "Pain in the head." I say. She asks what pain is and I do my best to define it.

"Apologies. I may be a goddess, but I am far from perfect." She says.

"Right, right. Is there a reason why you're talking to me right now?"

"I wished to make sure you made it to Equestria safely. It appears that you have, for the most part." Epona says. I think I see a smile on her face.

"Yeah, I'm doing okay. I don't like the headache, though. Could you do something about it when I wake up?"

"I will do my best." Epona says. Her horn lights up for a second. "Do you have any more questions?"

Honestly, I have hundreds. Thousands. I don't ask Epona, though. "N-No."

Epona nods once. Her horn lights up again and my vision fades to white.


	3. Starstruck

**A/N: Here's chapter 3 of Rebirth. I mentioned last week that I'd probably be updating on Saturdays or Sundays. Due to personal reasons, that's not going to work out. Instead, I'll be updating on Fridays. Also, a late happy birthday to Tara Strong (voice of Twilight Sparkle and pretty much every other cartoon character I grew up to).**

**Kyguy - I'm not going to spoil anything.**

When I wake up, I feel terribly nauseous, like I'm about to throw up. My head is spinning like I just got drunk or fought a boxer. Knowing me, either is likely. I rub my head and sit up.

The room I'm in is unfamiliar at first, then I remember what happened. I'm in that pony's home. What was her name again? Fluttershy? Yeah, that's it.

I want to blame my nausea on Epona. It's likely, but I was also on antidepressants. Withdrawal from them is a likely cause, too. Since I doubt there are any antidepressants Fluttershy's home, I'll probably just have to deal with it. There might be some at the hospital or a pharmacy.

Ugh. If I had known I would die in that damn car, I'd have stopped taking the medicine. Since there's this much nausea, I'll probably throw up once I move off the sofa. Well, why bother waiting? Fluttershy did show me the location of the bathroom during that tour.

The bathroom is, unfortunately, up the stairs. I quickly get off the sofa and sprint up the stairs. My stomach feels like I just got off a rollercoaster in the middle of an earthquake. I manage to keep that sickening bile down my throat until I get inside the bathroom. I let it loose inside the toilet.

I flush it and sit back. It didn't feel even remotely good to throw up, but now that I have, I feel a bit better. Well, compared to when I woke up, that is.

I look down at my chest and see that some of the vomit managed to get on my shirt. Damn. This is one of my favorites, too. I take off my shirt. Fluttershy's bathroom is a bit chilly. I wish I had an undershirt with me. Well, it was late summer and Seattle was being surprisingly warm and dry for a few days.

I toss the dirty shirt into a nearby basket. It had a pile of clothes in it, so I just assumed it was for dirty clothes.

I stand back up and walk out of the room. My stomach growls, likely due to its inhabitants being forcibly kicked out. The obvious solution is to do find Fluttershy's refrigerator.

I walk down the stairs and into the kitchen. I notice a note on the fridge.

_Mark,_

_I went out to get some medicine for your headache. I might be out for about an hour or two. There's some food in the refrigerator if you get hungry. Feel free to take anything you want. I'm sorry if there isn't something you want in there._

_Fluttershy_

I smile at her note. She's nicer than most people I knew back on earth, and I haven't even known her for a day.

Just after finishing the note, I hear a knock at the door. "Hey Fluttershy! You home? I've got cool stuff to show you!" A voice comes from the other side. I turn to the sound that ruined my chance to get food. The door opens to reveal a cyan pegasus with a rainbow colored mane and tail. The pegasus notices me and stops her flight in what I assume to be shock. After a second, the pegasus flinches.

"Uh… Hi." I say with a faint wave of my hand. "Fluttershy's not home right now." The pegasus looks up and down at me.

"What are you?" She asks after some time. Unlike Fluttershy, this pegasus seemed to be more curious rather than scared. I do sense some fear, though, likely due to me being about twice the mare's size. Mare's the word for female horses, right?

Like I did with Fluttershy's question, I don't like how the pegasus worded her sentence. I'm expecting to hear that question more often. "I'm human. My name is Mark Cleveland."

The pegasus is visibly excited at that. "Whoa! A human? I never thought they existed!" She shouted. Her voice cracked a bit, which put a smile on my face. "I never thought I'd be able to meet one! I've read so much about you!"

"You don't exactly seem like a reader." I say out loud on accident. I keep myself from putting a hand over my mouth.

The pegasus blushes at that. "Yeah… I just got into it recently." She rubs her head and looks at the ground. "I never told you my name! I'm sorry. I'm Rainbow Dash." She holds out her hoof.

For half a second, I look at her hoof. What am I supposed to do? I shake her hoof after quickly deciding. She looks at me strangely. I guess shaking her hoof was the wrong idea. Maybe a fist bump?

Now that I think about it, I think I've heard this pegasus' name somewhere before. Damn. This is going to bother me. "Cool name. I assume I'll see the Dash part of it coming up later?"

Rainbow Dash puts a toothy grin on her face. "Definitely. I'm the fastest flyer in Equestria!" Her enthusiasm puts a smile on my face. I guess Equestria is the country I'm in.

"I hope you've got proof of that. I'd like to see you fly sometime." I say with a smile.

"Why not now?" She says and bolts out the door. A rainbow trail follows her. I follow her, but not nearly as fast. I don't want to throw up again. Rainbow Dash speeds across Fluttershy's lawn and into the sky. She has a steep takeoff. I lose track of her in the sky within ten seconds.

I keep searching for her in the sky. A loud sound, like an explosion, bounces off the nearby trees. A massive circle with a rainbow pattern erupts in the middle of the sky. A rainbow moves out of the circular rainbow and shoots across the sky. It makes a sudden 90 degree turn towards me. I don't even get a chance to instinctively raise my arms before it strikes the ground in front of me.

Rainbow Dash lands at my feet. "Woo! Haven't done a Sonic Rainboom in a while!" She celebrates her personal victory.

"Damn." I say. "You're telling me you did that? I've never seen anything like that in my life!"

Rainbow Dash gives me a wide smile. If I was in her shoes (or is it hooves?), I would be too. She laughs and punches her hooves like she's in a boxing match. I wouldn't be surprised if this pony was in a few fights. She calms down a bit and looks back at me. "Are you new in town?"

I nod. "Yeah. I haven't even been here for a day yet."

"And you've already spent the night with Fluttershy." Rainbow Dash chuckles. "I know she's nice, but she's already got a stallionfriend. I mean, a... what am I even supposed to call you?"

My face starts to heat up. "Whoa, Dashie, we're not-"

Rainbow Dash interrupts me with a laugh. "I know. She's got 'shy' in her name for a reason. Also, don't call me Dashie." I'm not sure if it's the lighting or something else, but it looks like she's about to attack me.

Just to be safe, I hold up my hands in defense. "Sorry. Don't like nicknames?"

"Not that one. It can only come from Pinkie." She sighs and blows a stray hair out of her face. "Speaking of which, since you're new, I should show you to her." She flies off. I don't have much else to do, so I follow her.

Before we go, I write Fluttershy a note. Fortunately, I still have my pen with me. Rainbow Dash notices the pen and asks what it is. I describe it and she mentions that they have those old fashioned quills.

_Fluttershy_

_I met Rainbow Dash. Going to meet Pinkie Pie. I'll be back in a bit. See you soon._

_Mark_

We talk a bit during the brief walk. She mentions that the town is called Ponyville. I think I remember hearing the name before... Oh. Right. It's the cause for my headache last night. My head lightens a bit after remembering.

We arrive to the town after some time. There's other ponies in the town. All of them stare at me like I'm in a freakshow. I don't blame them. I'd be surprised if I saw somebody walking a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail. I mean, if it was back on earth. They would be looking at Rainbow. I'm saying that-Ah, whatever.

We bump into a pony. The first thing I notice about this one is the color of the coat. It's pink as Pepto Bismol. Her puffy mane is a darker shade. Before we even get a chance to say hi to her, she runs off. Knowing my size (I'm about twice as tall as the pony that ran off, along with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy), I probably scared her off.

Rainbow Dash looks at me. "Expect a party for you later today." She says with a toothy smile. I guess I didn't scare the pony off, then.


	4. Party Hard

**A/N: Chapter four is up and ready to read. I've been having some problems with Google Drive, which is what I use to write Rebirth, so some chapters might be a little late in the near future.**

**Kyguy - When it's time to party, Pinkie will always party hard.**

The rainbow hued pegasus gives me a quick tour of Ponyville before the party. It's kind of hard to concentrate, though. I'm still trying to get used to the fact that I'm now living in a world of talking colorful magical flying horses. Quite the culture shock, if you ask me.

Actually, it's not that different from Seattle. Just replace the people with horses and add in some magic.

The building that stands out the most would have to be the giant building that looks like a castle on top of a crystal tree trunk. "Damn." I say out loud.

Rainbow Dash shrugs. "You'll get used to it. There's weirder and cooler buildings than this."

The crystal treehouse kind of reminds me of the Space Needle in a way. "There's weirder and cooler buildings where I come from." I say. The memory of my death flashes in my mind and I briefly lose my balance.

Rainbow notices. "Y'okay?"

"I'm fine." I say. She doesn't seem to believe me, but doesn't say anything about it. "So, what's next?"

She smiles. "Let's go to Sugarcube Corner. I think we gave Pinkie enough time."

"Who? And enough time for what?"

"You'll see."

* * *

I follow my guide to a large building that looks like a giant gingerbread house. So that's what Rainbow Dash meant by weider buildings. We walk in the building.

The next thing to happen nearly gives me a heart attack. The massive group of ponies shouting "SURPRISE" would do the same to any sane person.

I instinctively reach for my knife. Since I put it in a different pocket than usual, I can't use it. That's a good thing. I don't want to be known as someone that killed a pony on their first day in a new world. That would be bad.

Fortunately, nobody seems to notice or care. The Pepto Bismol pony I saw before walks up to me with a smile. She's got a party hat on her head and one a party horn in her mouth. She blows the horn and somehow manages to say "Hi" through it. She takes the horn out and says "Hi" again.

I've only heard this pony say two words and she's already put a smile on my face. She could easily be in a cartoon. "Hi." I say. "Is this party for me?"  
"Yep! I'm Pinkie Pie!" Her words are fast enough to put DragonForce to shame. "I throw _aaaaall_ the parties in town! Not when Cheese Sandwich is around, though. Parties for every occasion! Holidays! Birthdays! Weddings! New ponies or whatever you are!" That last sentence kind of hurt. I guess it's inevitable hearing stuff like that. I'll have to get used to it, in that case. She senses my discomfort and puts on a pouty face. With her coat color, it's a pretty cute face. "Did I say something bad?"

"Don't worry about it, Pinkie." I say, dismissing the subject with a wave of my hand. Pinkie stares at it. "I'm a human. Humans don't have hooves. My name is Mark Cleveland."

Pinkie drops her pout. "Ooooh… I know somepony who'd love to meet you! I think she's at the party."

"You sure about that, Pinkie?" Rainbow Dash asks. To be honest, I forgot she was there for a second. "I mean, if we're talking about the same mare."

Pinkie nods so fast that I think her head's going to fly off. "Yep! She'll love you, Mark."

I follow Pinkie. I'm treated with some looks of either fear, confusion, or disgust. I'd rather be ignored, but it's difficult to ignore something twice the size of you.

She leads me to a light green mare with green and white hair and a horn on her head talking to a beige mare with dark blue and pink hair. This one doesn't have a horn or pair of wings, like Pinkie. "Lyyyyyraaaaa!" Pinkie says in a sing-song voice. The green pony turns around. I take it her name is Lyra? She stares at me in awe for a second. Then she faints. Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, the other mare, and I look at Lyra.

"Yo, Lyra." I say after a second. "Y'alright?"

"She'll be fine." The mare I haven't officially met yet says. "Probably. She's a huge nerd for humans. You're not exactly common around here. She's actually practiced meeting humans before…"

"If I had to guess, you have too."

She shrugs. "It's like talking to just another pony."

"Thanks."

Before we can keep talking, we're interrupted by a purple unicorn. No, alicorn. I notice her pair of wings. Whoever this is, she reminds me of Epona. The pony looks up at me. "So you're the stallion I've been hearing so much about today." She smiles. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. Element of Magic and Princess of Friendship." This little pony doesn't exactly strike me as royalty. Aren't princesses supposed to live in castles only in large cities? Unless this restaurant has hidden guards, I doubt it's a castle. I have no idea what the 'Element of Magic' is supposed to mean. She offers her hoof for me to shake, which I do. I notice that the pony I was just talking to disappeared, along with Lyra.

"I'm Mark Cleveland." I say.

"Could I ask you a few questions? Since you're new here, and the only human I've seen in my life, I'd like to let the princesses know about you." She says with a smile.

Princesses? Plural? So there's at least two other princesses in this country. As I previously thought, this country isn't a monarchy. I don't know what they call countries with two leaders. Diarchy? Biarchy? "Yeah, I'll answer your questions."

"Thank you, Mark Cleveland."

"Mark is fine." I say. I've never liked people, or in this case ponies, saying both of my names. For some reason, when Epona did it, I wasn't bothered.

Twilight nods. "Could you follow me into a different room?" She asks.

"Yeah, sure." I just hope she doesn't try to murder me. I've seen enough movies to know that's a possibility. Though her title of 'Princess of Friendship' kind of implies that I'll survive this encounter.

I follow Twilight into another room. "It's just quieter in here." She says. "Not that there's anything wrong with noise. It's just easier for interviewing."

"That's true." I say. "Do you work for a newspaper or something?"

The alicorn shakes her head. "No. I'm a librarian, actually. I'm also the Element of Magic and Princess of Friendship, as I've said before." She quickly describes what those are. I didn't expect Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie to also be Elements. Partially because I had no idea what an Element of Harmony was until a minute ago.

"Didn't you have some questions for me?" I ask before she goes off on that subject. I've known enough people like that for one lifetime. And since I'm apparently in a new life…

Twilight blushes a bit. "Oh, right. Sorry about that. I'm like that sometimes. Why are you shaking so much?"

I didn't notice that I was. "Before I got here, I was taking antidepressants. I guess my body got addicted to them. I'm probably going through a withdrawal. I've got a bit of a headache, too." I explain. I don't mention the nausea I had this morning.

"There might be something to help with that at the pharmacy." She says, then starts to ask me a few questions about my past life. The first one being where I'm from.

"Well, I'm not actually from here. Not from Equestria, I mean. I'm from a different planet, I think, called Earth." I start to explain. Twilight hesitates to write that down, but quickly does. I stop to let her get caught up.

"That's what I thought... I didn't think I would be right, though. That you're not from this planet, I mean. I've never seen or heard of anypony on this planet seeing a human." Twilight smiles. I'm not sure if it's because she was right or something else.

"You don't seem shocked that I'm an alien."

She shrugs. "I've seen some things similar to you, Mark. Besides, I've read enough to know a bit about humans. I always thought they were mythical, though. I guess I was wrong..." She sighs and looks at the ceiling. After a second, she looks back at me. "Can you tell me a bit more about your home? Before coming here, I mean."

"I'm from a place called Seattle. It's a large city in the state of Washington. Country is United States of America." I start. "I was actually born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It's about 120 miles north of Seattle. I moved to Seattle when I was 4 years old."

Twilight nods and writes that down. She asks me the spelling of some of the words. "Anyway, I have some more questions about your homeworld." She asks questions from many different subjects, ranging from music and other forms of entertainment to religion and politics. I don't talk much about those last two, and she doesn't force anything out of me. We also talk a bit about Earth's technology, but not a lot. It's likely because she doesn't exactly understand. That makes sense, seeing as how I didn't notice any telephone wires, cell phone towers, or airplanes in the sky.

"Huh... So movies are like paintings, but they move?"

"Hence the term 'movie'. They've also got sound, too. We've had movies with sound for almost 100 years. Movies themselves have been around for over 130."

"Wow. So, they're like plays?" She looks amazed.

I shrug. "Some are. Some movies are actually adaptations of plays. Others being adaptations of books or remakes of other movies. There's also some influenced by things that actually happened or some with original plots." I say. Twilight looks... dizzy? Confused? "We can talk more about this some other time."

Twilight looks at a clock. "Celestia! Wow, it's already been an hour! I'm sorry I took so much time out of the party for you."

I hold up my hand. "No, don't be. It's okay. I'm not much of a partier."

Twilight lets out a sigh of relief. "We should still get you back to the party. Pinkie throws amazing parties. I'm sure you'll love it."


	5. Nothing Else Matters

**A/N: Chapter five of Rebirth is here. I'd like to announce that I'll be at Everfree Northwest this year, if things go according to plan. I'm not going to be on a panel or anything, but just as a regular person. EFNW will be my first convention, too. **

**Guest (Chapter 3) - Fluttershy is single. You might have misread that part. I actually meant that as a joke.**

**Web - Mercenary Of Mercenaries (Chapter 1) - Is this a hater I detect? Already? I've been told that once you've got a hater, you're good. So thanks for making me good.**

**Kyguy - I don't actually have any plans for Blueblood or Flash yet.**

As it turns out, I did enjoy the party Pinkie threw for me. The party was like being in an Andrew W.K. album for a few hours. It lasted around seven hours long. I've been to longer parties, but I never remember most of the time I've spent. I blame alcohol.

I talked a bit with Rainbow, Pinkie, and Twilight. Pinkie talks fast enough that her mouth could be a member of DragonForce. Actually, she's probably a bit faster than them.

During the party, I meet a dark orange pony with no special features, except for the hat. I think they're called Stetson hats. I'm not an expert on hats, so don't expect me to know the actual name.

"I take it Pinkie threw this party fer ya?" The mare asks. She has a very noticeable Southern accent.

"Yeah." I say. "Are you asking because I'm new here or just really sexy?"

She looks at me with an odd expression. "...Because you're new. I'd have tah guess new tah Equestria." I nod. "Also, Ah can't exactly tell if yah're… attractive or not."

I give her a smile. "Thanks for being honest." To be even more honest, I was expecting this pony to blush, at least a little bit.

"Well, Ah am the Element of Honesty."

"Jesus, how many Elements of Harmony are there?"

"Six." She says bluntly.

And I've met five of them within 24 hours. "Are they all in the same town?"

"Yep."

That's probably not the best idea, if you ask me. It's kind of like having a squad of soldiers close to each other. A single grenade could easily kill them all. What if there's an attack on Ponyville?

The pony notices. "What's on yer mind?" I tell her what I was thinking just a second ago. "The Elements of Harmony don't work when they're not connected. Twi would know more. Yah've met 'er, right?"

"Yeah. She interviewed me."

"Ah'm not surprised." She rolls her eyes.

"Oh, I never introduced myself." I realize out loud.

"Ah already know who yah're. Mark Cleveland or something, right?"

I nod. "Yeah. How do you know?"

"A mythical creature suddenly appears in town? How could Ah not? All of Ponyville knows and Ah'd bet half of Equestria does, too." Damn. And I haven't even been in this world for 24 hours yet. I guess it makes sense. It would be like a dragon coming to Earth. "Ah'm Applejack, by the way." The mare breaks me from my thoughts. She holds out her hoof.

Learning from my previous experience earlier today, I tap my fist to Applejack's hoof. She gives me a slight smile. So that's what I'm supposed to do. I can get used to that pretty fast. I had a few friends back on Earth that seemed to only communicate with fist bumps.

* * *

The party ends a few hours later and my stomach feels like it's about to explode. I quickly get to Fluttershy's before anything bad happens to my stomach. Fluttershy's there. We exchange a quick greeting before I go to my bed. I guess I passed out instead of fell asleep, because I don't see Epona that night. Either that or she won't always be in my dreams. I'm going to go with the latter.

* * *

The next morning feels like a mix of a hangover and terrible drunkenness, but in my stomach instead of my head. The thing is, I didn't have anything alcoholic. Just a whole bunch of cake, ice cream, and cupcakes. A few apples too. That 'apple a day keeps the doctor away' saying is a complete lie, by the way.

Moving around too much will probably make me throw up. Since I've already vacated my stomach once in the past 24 hours, I don't want it to happen again for a while. In fact, I would be perfectly fine if I never threw up again.

To keep the food where I want it to be, I leave the house a bit after noon and sit at the base of a tree near Fluttershy's house. Like I expected, my stomach settles a bit.

I breathe in the cold morning air. It's normally colder in Seattle. I actually planned on moving to a warmer area with less rain, like Los Angeles. I guess Epona already handled that for me. I'm not sure how often it rains in Equestria, though. Time will tell.

"Hey, Mark." A familiar voice says, waking me from my trance. I look to see the source. It was the blue pegasus. What was her name? Monochrome Stop? No, Rainbow Dash. "What're you doing?"

I pause the music and stretch. "Just soaking up the beauty of this place." By then, my stomach's already calmed down.

Rainbow Dash smiles and lands. "Yeah, Ponyville's a pretty cool town. Not as cool as Cloudsdale, though. What you you think of Ponyville so far?"

I shrug. "Everything is just so… Different. It'll take time to get used to all of this." I sigh. "I mean, it's all nice. I like it all. Everybody is just so nice. I'm not used to it."

Rainbow Dash nods with a sigh. "I think I understand. Were there a lot of bullies where you were from?"

I rub my chin and feel some fresh stubble. I need to shave. Do they even have razors in Equestria? I force myself to take my mind back to Rainbow Dash's question. "Not exactly. I guess I worded that wrong. There were some bullies, but most people in my area were nice." I start to feel a little drowsy and stretch my arms out.

The pegasus nods. "Yeah, I get you." She inspects my face for an uncomfortably long time. "What do you have in your ears?"

I take my headphones out. "Oh, sorry. I forgot these were in. These are called headphones. They let music be played directly into the ears rather than for everybody to hear."

She turns her head slightly, like a confused dog. "Wouldn't that hurt, though?"

I shake my head with a bit of a smile. "Not always. I guess it depends on how loud the music is. I like to play my music kind of loud compared to other humans. Mostly because my hearing is sort of weak and because of the genres I like."

Rainbow Dash sits next to me. She rests her leg on my knee. If she were a human, I would push her away. Since she's not, and isn't too uncomfortable, I let her stay. "What do you like?"

"A lot. Why don't I let you hear for yourself?" I offer her the headphones and she takes them. She puts them in her ears, which sort of amazes me. Even though I just witnessed it, I still have no idea how she did it. How do ponies do so much without fingers? The thought leaves as quick as it entered. I show her how to use my iPod.

After each song we listen to, she asks me what they're called. She visibly enjoys most, especially the ones with faster tempos. When I play Rainbow in the Dark by Dio, she smiles, likely due to the title.

"Thanks, Mark. I'll have to listen to some of that again." Rainbow Dash says with a smile. "I need to go now." She gets off my leg and stands up.

I stand up and briefly lose my balance due to my leg being asleep. I stay standing up, though. "If you want to, you can borrow it for a while."

Rainbow Dash's smile grows. I can tell she's trying to hide it. Once she realizes that I notice, a faint blush shows up on her face. "Really?" I nod. The pegasus hugs me and takes the iPod. "Thanks! I owe you one."

"No need. Anything for a friend." I say. She hugs me again. This time I manage to hug her as well, but only get to wrap my arms partially around her head. Rainbow Dash flies off. "Oh, the song names are on the screen!" I shout in hopes of her to hear. The pegasus doesn't seem to hear. I sigh and sit back against the tree.

My eyes begin to close as I relax my body. I listen to the ambient sounds of Ponyville replacing (hopefully only temporarily) my iPod. The same sounds I heard when I first arrived. Unlike before, it was relaxing this time. If the silence was always like this, I could get used to it.

I stay there for a few more hours until I get unbearably bored. It must have been a few hours, because it's already dark. I probably fell asleep.

I walk towards Fluttershy's house. I know she won't be awake at this time, but it's really the only place I could sleep without feeling creepy.

I slowly open the door. Fluttershy is in the living room. It's as if she's a parent and I'm a teenager that snuck out at night. Well, it would be, except the pegasus is asleep. She has a book on the table. Since it's open, I can't see the title.

I smile at the sight and pull a blanket over the mare. She shifts her body but remains asleep. I notice her mouth is moving a little bit. I know a bit about reading lips, but I have no idea what she's saying. Besides, I don't have any idea if mouths move the same way on ponies as they do on humans.

The thought of it bothers me enough to keep me up for half an hour until I fall asleep. I never bothered to notice the mouth movements of the other ponies. I remind myself to keep my eyes open for that sort of stuff.

Eventually, I fall asleep.

That night, I dream of my old home in Seattle. Everything from the city comes to mind. My weekly visits to Pike's Place. Dana and her girlfriend. My fatal car crash.

I hate that memory already, and it hasn't even been with me for half a week. I wish it never happened. I'm just glad my death wasn't too painful.

The image of Epona enters my dream. "Apologies, Mark Cleveland. I am unable to control dreams." She says. Her voice is soothing, almost motherly, this time. "There is, however, a pony that is able to. She may have seen your dream."

"Well, if she can, then she shouldn't have me dreaming of death." Now that I think about it, that pony's ability is like a hardcore version of 1984. And I'm not talking about the Van Halen album.

"Eh, it's okay. I lived in the United States. I'm used to people watching over me." Take that, politicians.

Epona looks confused, but doesn't bother to ask about what I meant. After a brief time, she just nods. "As I mentioned, I cannot control dreams. I do, however, have the ability to determine when they end. It is an ability I inherited from a god who has since passed on." She stops talking and looks down for a few seconds. I wish I could hug her.

Since I don't want to see Epona like this, I change the subject. "You mentioned a pony that can control dreams, right?"

She looks up at me. I can't tell whether or not I distracted her from mourning. "I did indeed, but I meant to say 'enter', not 'control.' This pony is an alicorn, like me."

"And Twilight Sparkle." I say without thinking.

Epona looks at me for a second. She nods after a brief time. "Twilight Sparkle… You've met her. I have not had the honor to yet. I have heard tales of this young mare." She smiles. If I could, I would too. I'd rather see people smile rather than frown. "Be sure to keep Twilight Sparkle as a friend, Mark Cleveland. After your time on Earth, you deserve her as a friend."

"Thank you, Epona. It's an honor to have _you_ as a friend." I say. I consider her a friend, even though I've never physically met her.

Epona smiles at me. "Friendship is one of the most important things in life, Mark Cleveland. Nothing else matters. Remember this."

Nothing else matters? Besides the basic needs of survival, I'm assuming. She probably means friendship is the most important thing in life besides air, water, and food. "I will, Epona."

Her horn lights up and my vision fades to white. I wish our conversations could last a bit longer.


	6. City of Alicorns

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. It was announced yesterday that season five is coming out on April 4. Because of that, I'll have my first double update. In other news, I'll likely have another story on Fimfiction and here out some time before EFNW.**

**Kyguy - Here's the next chapter for you.**

**Ace The Absol - I had to put that pun in somewhere. Don't worry, Mark will get his iPod back soon, along with something extra thrown in.**

I don't wake up until the sun invades my eyes. Before actually getting up, I roll over and notice a note with familiar handwriting. Fluttershy's. How can a creature without any fingers write? I kind of understand how a pegasus or alicorn could, because of the magic. Maybe they use their mouths? I need to remind myself to not think about stuff like that.

_Mark,_

_When you didn't come for a while, I was a little scared. It took me time to think that you might have gotten a new home or rented a room. You would have told me though, right? I was glad to see that you were here. I wish I was awake when you came back. I fell asleep while reading one of my favorite books. Thanks for putting that blanket over me, by the way._

Ah, so she was awake when I did that. If that was back on earth and I did the same to Dana, she'd probably accuse me of hitting on her. I smile at the memory of her. The smile quickly fades to a frown, knowing that I'd never see her again. I hope she's doing fine without me. I push the thought away and get back to the letter.

_Come on down when you're ready, if you want to. I'll have breakfast made. I'll remake it if you wake up at a different time than I expect._

_Fluttershy_

At the end of the signature, there's a blacked out circular shape. It looks like she tried to erase the figure, but couldn't and just scribbled over it. If I got this letter when I was in high school, I'd think it was a heart. Another smile comes to my face, but this one is quickly replaced with a frown. I wouldn't be able to go to school again, at least not on Earth.

The frown fades from my face. It's not like I was planning on going to college or anything.

I rub my chin, feeling the stubble begin to take the form of a small beard. I'd have to shave or else I'd look like a biker within a couple of days. I make a mental note of asking about if there are razors here. There was something else I was going to ask about, but I can' remember what it was going to be.

I move downstairs and see Fluttershy. "Hi, Mark." She says softly.

"Hi, Fluttershy." I say. "I got your note. Didn't know you were up when I put the blanket over you." She blushes a bit. She seems to do that a lot.

Fluttershy hides a bit behind her mane. Damn, she's cute. Cute like how a cat is. "Oh, yes I was. I meant to talk to you, but you seemed to be too tired."

"I was tired, but not enough to not talk." I say. I sit down at the table. The pegasus places a plate with delicious-looking food on it. It has an amazing scent to it. I could probably live off just the smell of this dish.

She notices me not eating. "Not hungry?"

"I'm hungry. This just looks too good to eat." I say. Eating this would be like eating a da Vinci painting. Fluttershy blushes again and giggles. I reluctantly poke at it with the fork she gave me. I put some of the food into my mouth. Mere words cannot express just how awesome it is. "Damn, Fluttershy. This is easily the best food I've had in my life. Maybe in a few lifetimes." I finish the plate within two minutes.

Fluttershy smiles and looks proud of herself. "Thank you, Mark. The other ponies don't exactly… think that." She rubs her forehoof.

"I think you could sell this."

She blushes at that. "I'm not even the best cook around here." Fluttershy says and tries to hide behind her mane. "That honor would have to go to Pinkie or Applejack, I think."

"If you're not the best cook, I'd love to see who is. Both of the girls you mentioned seem nice."

"Mares." Fluttershy corrects me after a short hesitation. Using this new form of vocabulary is going to be tough to get used to. "W-We also say 'everypony' instead of 'everybody...'"

"So I have to get used to replacing 'body' with 'pony?'" I ask. That's what I got out of what this shy pegasus I'm talking to.

"Y-You don't have to…"

"Then it's more of an accent sort of thing?"

Fluttershy thinks about that for a second. "I guess so."

"I'll still try to get used to using 'pony' instead of 'body'. You might have to help remind me to do that."

"I-I'll do my best."

My stomach growls loudly. "Is it too late for breakfast?"

She shakes her head slightly. "No, it's not."

We have breakfast shortly after. This food is just as good as the last dish Fluttershy made.

A few minutes after digesting what was pretty much the Mona Lisa of foods, Fluttershy and I go for a walk through Ponyville. The residents of the little town (compared to Seattle, at least) are still trying to get used to me. Most of them are just avoiding me altogether. It makes sense, seeing as how I'm about twice their heights, I suddenly appeared without warning, and I've only been here for a few days.

Some time after the walk started, a gray pegasus with a blonde mane awkwardly flies toward us. She stops with a landing that's just as awkward as her flight. I'm surprised this mare even landed successfully. She stands up and I can tell her balance is absolutely terrible. With a close look, I see that her eyes are gold colored. The most noticeable thing about her eyes is the fact that it's the worst case of wall-eyedness I've ever seen in my life. Both this one and the one on Earth.

The wall-eyed mare pulls out an envelope from her saddlebag. She looks at it for a few seconds. "Letter for a Max Cloverland, I think."

"Mark Cleveland." I correct her. "Thanks for the letter. What's your name? I need to know who I just thanked."

The mare smiles at me. Her eyes continue to point in different directions. "My friends call me Derpy Hooves." With those eyes, I should have seen something like that coming.

She hands me the envelope. "Thank you, Derpy Hooves." With a cute smile, Derpy flies off somewhere else. After a few second, she turns around and continues to fly.

Fluttershy walks up to me. "A letter already?"

"I guess so. She's the second pony I've met so far to know my name." Things like that never happened to me on Earth. It's pretty relieving, but sort of creepy at the same time.

"Who's it from?" She sounds more curious than I do.

I look at the envelope. "This doesn't say." This certainly isn't the USPS. They'd be all over this just because it doesn't have any stamps.

After chuckling out loud at my own mental joke, and a strange look from Fluttershy, I open up the envelope to reveal a folded up piece of paper. The outside of the letter doesn't say who it's from, but it does have a fancy ornate symbol of something resembling an alicorn.

I open up the letter and read it out loud.

_Dear Mark Cleveland of Ponyville _

_There have been rumors among Canterlot civilians that what was once believed to be a mythical creature, a human, is alive and well. Recently, these rumors were confirmed as factual. Without a doubt, the entire planet knows of your existence._

_I know without having to meet you that you wish to know who I am and why I am contacting you. If you would journey to Canterlot, that would be most excellent. I wish to keep this letter brief and to remain from questioning your arrival to Equestria via letter, as others may be able to read this. Please, come to the castle whenever convenient and find me, preferably by yourself._

_Princess Luna of Canterlot_

The brief silence feels like hours. "Y-Y-You can't just ignore a l-letter from a Princess…" Fluttershy says, breaking the silence.

My response comes after a slight hesitation. "Who's Princess Luna?"

The timid mare to my side gives a quick explanation of the Princess. "You have to go talk to her, Mark."

"I guess I do." I say. "Where's Canterlot?" Fluttershy points her hoof at a distant mountain. After a second, I notice a massive city built into the side of the mountain. I guess it's Canterlot.

"Trains go there often." Fluttershy says. I notice that her voice is quieter than normal. If I had to guess, she's scared for me. From the explanation she gave me, I wouldn't be surprised. I'm about to talk to a creature that's practically a goddess that just spent a thousand years in complete isolation from any creature, living or dead. Even though she sounds nice enough from the letter, I don't think this is going to end well for me. Usually, my gut feeling is right. I hope it's wrong this time.

Fluttershy senses my discomfort. Either that, or I'm just making it blatantly obvious. "Can you come to Canterlot with me?" Her eyes widen. "The other Elements can come with us, if you want."

She lets out a sigh of relief. "T-That would be okay."

"Alright. It would also give me a nice chance to meet all of them."

* * *

A few hours later, Fluttershy and I arrive at the train station. Five other ponies are there waiting for us. I recognize four of them as Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash (who doesn't appear to have my iPod at the moment), Applejack, and Pinkie Pie. I notice a small purple lizard like creature hiding behind Twilight. I can tell it's scared, so I remind myself to not make any sudden movements.

I don't recognize the other pony. She's a white unicorn with a very fancy purple mane. On the unicorn's flank is a picture of three diamonds. I remember seeing different pictures on pretty much every other pony I've seen so far, except for a few younger ponies. I make a mental note to ask about the pictures later. They're probably tattoos or something.

"Oh, you must be Mark Cleveland!" The white unicorn says to me when I get to the group. "You are a human, correct?"

"I'm pretty sure, yeah." I say. "I guess you have the advantage of knowing me, but I don't know you. What's your name?"

She looks somewhat disappointed. "My name is Rarity, owner of Carousel Boutique and Element of Generosity."

"What's the Carousel Boutique?"

She looks even more disappointed. Hey, don't blame me. Blame the fact that this is my second day here. "Carousel Boutique is, besides my home, my area of work. It is where I make clothes for ponies."

"I'll have to stop by some time. I don't have a lot of clothes." I say.

"Why would you need any?" She asks bluntly. I don't need a mirror to know there's a blush on my face. "What?"

Humans wear clothes a lot more than ponies do, I guess. "Back on Earth, pretty much everywhere on it, it's against the law to not wear clothes. It's a social taboo to not wear anything in almost every culture. Part of it is because we don't have any coats like ponies do. At least, not in most places on the body."

"Yo, train's coming." Rainbow Dash interrupts the conversation. As if on cue, I hear a train whistle.

The train arrives. It's one of those old fashioned trains, like something out of the Old West. I guess it makes sense, seeing as how the technology in Equestria is pretty limited compared to modern Earth.

I follow the six ponies onto the train. It's mostly empty, save for one pony. He just brushes past me and doesn't seem to notice or care about me. His reaction, or lack thereof, is pretty surprising and almost insulting. Part of me doubts he's used to seeing creatures twice his height.

The train ride is long. It's only about an hour long, but it feels like six hours to me. Probably because I feel like I'm on my way to my death. I'm about to speak to a practical goddess that can easily kill me with just a look. It feels like I'm about to talk to Darth Vader or Darth Sidious.

The only good thing about the trip is that I get to talk to my newest friends. My only friends, actually. I get to know them a bit more. Applejack, somewhat unsurprisingly, works at a farm. Fluttershy works with animals, which I didn't see happen for some reason. Pinkie works at a restaurant or something like that. I can barely understand her. Fortunately, I had a brief phase of being into speed metal, so that helped me understand her. Only a bit, though. As I've said before, she puts DragonForce to shame.

Like I said, the train ride feels six times longer than it actually is. I've had to make long drives, which truthfully doesn't really help. Of course, when making those trips, I never had to meet a goddess that may or may not want to kill me in the most painful way imaginable. Just some family business.

The train comes to a grinding halt, which sends a shiver down my spine. I manage to hide it well enough that my equine companions don't notice. Either that, or I'm being painfully obvious and they do but don't want to offend me or something. I'm going to assume it's the former.

Twilight points me to the castle, which I could see from even Fluttershy's house. "We'll be at Donut Joe's once you're done." Twilight says. The girls head inside a small cafe.

I walk up to the gates of the castle. The two guards at the front cross their spears. It makes me jump a bit, but I regain my composure. "My name is Mark Cleveland." I say. "Princess Luna wanted to see me." I've never exactly been in a situation like this, so I don't know what to say.

I guess I was right, though. The guards uncross their spears, but don't say anything. They're like the British Royal Guards.

As soon as I enter the castle, a chill goes down my spine. It's not because there's a draft. "I'm going to die in here…" As much as I hate to say it, that sentence came from me.


	7. Ride the Lightning

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. Sorry about the formatting error for the last chapter. I noticed it the day after I published it and fixed it as soon as I could. Also, I suggest following me on Twitter ( RattPitt), partially so I'll use it more and partially for you to get updates for things faster.**

**Kyguy - Thanks.**

As I walk deeper into the castle, I can't help but feel that I'm closer to the gallows. My gut feelings aren't usually wrong, but I seriously hope they are this time.

A guard turns to me. "Mark Cleveland, right?" She says. In my state, it's no surprise that I almost jumped out of my shoes when she did. After I calm myself down, I nod. "Princess Luna is looking for you. Follow me."

This guard seems nice enough. I hope Princess Luna is too. I follow the guard. During the walk, I notice that I'm breathing quickly and my pulse is faster than normal. I look forward at the guard in hopes of calming me down.

"Quit looking at my plot." The guard says. She didn't turn around to check. After a second, I notice that I was.

Instead of saying that it was an accident and seeming like a liar, I come up with something else. "I'm a guy. It's a biological thing." She keeps looking forward and grunts, but doesn't stop walking.

The rest of the walk is in complete silence. After a few minutes, the guard stops walking. I do too. "The Princess is in this room." She leaves and I think I hear her say something along the lines of 'Don't look at Luna's plot.'

I shake off the guard's words and knock on the door. It's quickly covered in some bluish aura. "What the hell?" I ask myself out loud.

The door opens. "Mark Cleveland." A female voice says from inside the dark room. "Please, enter." It's calm and soothing. Usually, calm and soothing voices don't scare the hell out of me. This isn't one of those times. "There is nothing to worry about."

"Who are you?" I ask. My legs force themselves to walk into the room.

"I am Princess Luna." The voice says. A tall creature walks into view. She's a pony that's a little taller than the average pony I've seen. I notice the horn on her head is covered in the same blue aura as the door. She also has a pair of wings. If what I encountered of Alicorns is true for all, Luna really is a Princess. "Please, don't be afraid. I won't harm you."

I look at her closely. I don't know much about body language, even in humans, but I can tell by her eyes that she's telling the truth. That, or she has a great poker face.

"You don't trust me, I can tell." She says in her still soothing voice. "How may I gain your trust?"

"How do you know about me?" I ask quickly, making sure my voice is strong.

Princess Luna nods and closes her eyes. I see a smile on her lips. At least, what I think would be a smile on a pony. "A creature we thought was mythical suddenly arrives to a town near the capital of a major country does not happen every millenium. When it does, it does not go unnoticed."

She's got a point. I think there's more to the story, though. "Is that all?"

She shakes her head after a brief hesitation. "No, Mark Cleveland. I should tell you that I have the ability to enter dreams."

Oh… So she knows about Epona, then. "You're the one who Epona was talking about, then…"

Princess Luna nods. Her reaction confirms that she knows about Epona. "Yes I am."

"Don't tell anybody." I say quickly. "I don't know how my friends would react."

"I understand, Mark Cleveland."

"Can you just call me Mark?" I ask, getting a nod in return. "But seriously. Don't tell anypony. I mean… I talk to a goddess in my sleep. I'm still trying to get used to it myself. They'll probably ask a whole bunch of questions. I don't like not having any answers."

"I won't tell anypony, Mark. Not even my sister, Princess Celestia."

"If what Twilight Sparkle told me about Celestia is true, then you can tell Princess Celestia." I say. When I mention Twilight's name, I notice Princess Luna practically beams with happiness. She notices too and tries to hide it. The key word is 'try.'

"Twilight Sparkle is a great pony. She is the reason why I am here. She saved me twice."

So Princess Luna is like Princess Peach and Twilight is like Mario. The image of Twilight wearing Mario's hat and a moustache is fun to think about. I barely manage to keep a smile off my face. "When I was coming here, I was honestly scared for my life. I'm glad you're friendlier than I expected."

"What makes you think I would be a bad pony?" She asks with a perplexed look on her face.

I'm going to assume the whole 'sent to the moon for a thousand years' is a touchy subject for her right now. "I've heard that you're past isn't exactly… average."

Princess Luna looks to the side with an annoyed look. I ready myself for any attack she might throw at me. "I… understand. My past was _far_ from the average pony…" She looks back to me. "I know you are talking about my time as Nightmare Moon."

"If it doesn't cause you to kill me, then yes I am."

Princess Luna actually giggles at that. I didn't exactly mean it as a joke. "It is okay, Mark. If what I have heard of you is true, I have no reason to harm you."

"Thank you, Princess Luna." I give her a bow of respect.

"Please, just call me Luna."

"I'll try to remember, Luna." A thought comes to my mind. "Is there any way I can get an identification of some sorts? Something like this?" I pull my wallet from my pocket and show her my driver's license from Earth.

Luna looks at the card, presumably to read it, and nods. "Yes you can. However, under normal circumstances, only ponies can have identification cards."

"Oh." My voice is downcast. Without an ID, I probably can't get my own house or drink alcoholic things.

"Under normal circumstances. I'm certain that one of the Princesses of Equestria will be able to give you assistance."

"Oh." This time, my voice is more upbeat. "I guess I didn't hear that 'under normal circumstances' part."

"Please, follow me." Luna says and opens the door from across the room. Her horn and the door are covered in that bluish aura from earlier.

"Is that magic?" I ask. To be honest, after arriving into a town filled with talking mythical creatures, where I'm a mythical creature to them, not much is very surprising. Not to mention the goddess that I sometimes talk to. If those exist, magic probably does, too.

"Yes it is, Mark." Luna says. I called that.

I follow Luna to wherever she's taking me. We get a few odd looks from guards, although most keep their heads forward.

On the way there, she tells me a bit about herself and her sister. The two somehow have the ability to move the moon and sun respectively. Their magic has to be extremely powerful to be able to do something like that. My respect for them has increased drastically.

"Where I'm from, the Moon orbits the Earth, which orbits the Sun, naturally."

"Really?" She sounds surprised and briefly stops. "I've never heard of such things." The Princess keeps walking and I continue to follow her. After another minute, she stops at a door and opens it. Both the door and her long horn and surrounded by that aura again. I make a mental note to watch out for any other aura that surrounds me.

Luna enters the room, but I don't follow. "Hello, Princess Luna." A male's voice inside says. "Are you here to check up on the ponies that got their IDs? It's a little early, isn't it?"

"No I'm not. I am here to assist in giving another an identification." Luna says.

"Well, who is it? We don't give ID's to ghosts." He laughs at his own joke.

Luna, however, doesn't laugh. "Actually…" She pokes her head out of the door and looks at me. "Could you come in?" I follow her inside.

The pony drops his drink and I hear something break. "What in Celestia's name is _that?_"

"This is Mark Cleveland." Luna says, barely holding in her aggression that I can feel from here. "He is a human."

The pony almost faints and reaches for a cup on his desk. He notices that he dropped it. "You're telling me that a mythical creature is… here? And you two are friends?"

"Yes."

The pony breathes in and out, probably to calm himself down. "Wow. I'll… get the ID ready. I'll just have to adjust the camera." He walks to a small set to my left that I didn't notice until now. It looks like something from picture day at school. When he moves past me, I notice that he glances up at me, then quickly looks forward again.

"Are you okay?" I ask.

"Don't hurt me!" He says in a high pitched voice.

I hold up my hands. "I'm not going to. Are you okay?"

He looks at me and Luna. "I-I hope so… Let's get this over with." He quickly adjusts the camera and takes my picture. After the picture is taken, the pony quickly writes something in a typewriter.

"Thank you. I'll be sure you get a raise in payment." Luna says. I follow her out of the room. "I apologize for his behavior. He is only used to talking to ponies. I should have informed you."

"It's okay, Luna. I think I'll have to get used to it." I let out a sigh. "When will I get my ID?"

"It should arrive to you within a few days. We will send it to Fluttershy when it is finished." Luna says. She stops walking. "The answer may be different, depending on your answer to my offer."

I turn to look at her. "What is it?" I run some possibilities through my head. Maybe they'll make me a knight or something. Is there a dragon for me to kill?

"As the Princess of the Night and Moon, I request thee, Mark Cleveland, Reborn Human in Equestria, to…" She pauses dramatically. "Live in Canterlot." She puts on a cute playful smile on her face.

Okay, that wasn't one of the possibilities I thought of. Because of what I thought of, and Luna's smile, I laugh a bit.

"Is that a yes?" She asks, still smiling.

After a second, I stop laughing. "I'll have to think about it, Luna. Canterlot reminds me of Seattle. My old home. All of the friends I've made so far, besides you, live in Ponyville."

Luna nods. "I understand, Mark. If you wish, I will ask you later."

"Yeah, I'd like that." Luna smiles and goes off somewhere else. I'm sort of leaning towards Canterlot because I've always loved big cities. If the pony that took my picture is any foreshadowing, I'll probably terrify everypony in the city. The average residents of Ponyville didn't seem to mind.

I keep thinking about where I should probably live until a pony I don't recognize walks up to me. He's a white unicorn with a dirty blonde mane. "What in Tartarus are you supposed to be?" He asks in a posh British accent. "Oh, you must be one of the new servants from out of Equestria." He smiles at me.

"I'm not a servant." I say to him. "What are _you_ supposed to be? The token asshole?"

The unicorn glares at me. "How dare you speak to royalty in such a manner? Do you even know who you are speaking to?"  
"No. I don't care, either."

"I am Prince Blueblood, nephew to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna and cousin of Princess Cadence." He says, ignoring what I said. "You are nothing but a peasant. Leave the castle."

Technically, this guy's right. I don't have any money and I'm officially homeless. "Princess Luna invited me here. I have no reason to leave." I show him the letter.

He reads the letter. "I apologize. You are not a peasant." I smile. "You are a _beast._"

My smile drops. Fortunately, I see Princess Luna walk up behind Blueblood. "And whom is this beast?" She asks. Blueblood's smile falls, and I find mine.

He turns around. "P-P-Princess Luna! I'm terribly sorry. This be-human lost his way and I-"

"Prince Blueblood." Luna interrupts him. "You may leave."

He hesitates before trotting off. I don't need to have 20/20 vision to see that his tail is literally in between his legs. "I'm glad I'm on your good side, Luna." I say to her.

"As am I, Mark." She says.

"That guy was really annoying. I'm glad you stepped in."

She smiles. "I don't like Blueblood either, to be truthful."

"So, am I done here? Not to imply that I don't like your company."

"Yes. Our business is complete."

I thank Luna and walk out of the castle. Twilight said to meet her at Donut Joe's or something like that. The conversation with Prince Dickface sort of made me forget. Getting pissed off like that tends to do things to me like that.


	8. Return to Solitude

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. I've started to work on some other fanfics, so Rebirth is likely going to have shorter chapters in the near future.**

**Kyguy - No promises**

**TechnoNerdDefeat (Chp. 4) - I'd like to add in more of Lyra and a few more background characters, but I can't say I have any plans of doing so yet.**

After half an hour of walking around the capital of Equestria, I finally find the restaurant. I enter and see the six familiar ponies at a table talking. The lizard-like creature is also there, sitting next to Twilight.

"Hey, Mark." Rainbow Dash says. The ponies and lizard look at me. "How'd it go?"

I sit in the booth, next to Rarity, with them. There's barely enough room. "Better than I expected."

"How'd you expect it to go?" Twilight asks with a worried look.

"Worse than it went."

"Thanks for being specific."

"Anytime, Twilight." I say. "Actually, Princess Luna helped me get an ID."

Rainbow Dash lets out a low whistle. "And to think a thousand years ago she tried to kill her sister and take over the world." Everypony, including me and the lizard, looks at her. "What? I'm just sayin'." We keep looking at her. She sighs and looks at me. "So are you gonna show us your ID?"

"I actually don't have it yet. I'll be getting it in a few days, Luna said. I'll show it to you all soon. I can show you my old one if you want."

"Eh, sure." Rainbow shrugs.

I pull out my wallet and my driver's license. I put it on the table and they look at my ID. "It's just got the normal stuff driver's licenses have. Picture, details of appearance, place of birth, et cetera."

Rainbow leans forward and looks at it. "Green eyes, brown hair. Yep, it's accurate."

"What's Seattle?" Pinkie asks after reading over my old ID. "Is it a food?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was, somewhere. It's actually where I was before coming to Equestria, like I already told Twilight." I say. "It's not where I was born, though. I'm from a place called Vancouver."

"V-Vanhoover? I thought you said you weren't from Equestria." Fluttershy says.

"Van_couver_, not Van_hoover_." I correct. "I'm not from Equestria, no. Vancouver's in a country called Canada. Seattle is in a country called the United States of America." I start to repeat what I told Twilight.

"So, Mark, how did you get tah Equestria?" Applejack asks.

I don't say anything for a while. The question sends a shiver down my spine and I shift my weight. "I… I don't want to talk about it. I'll probably tell you later."

Rarity rubs my forearm to comfort me. I'm sure if she was taller, she'd be rubbing my back instead. That would be more comforting, rather than this somewhat awkward forearm rubbing. "I think I can speak for all of us ponies, and Spike, that we won't force anything out of you."

"Thanks, Rarity." I tell her. She stops rubbing my forearm. I look at the lizard and point at him. "I'm guessing he's Spike?"

"Yeah. He's my number one assistant." Twilight says.

Spike clearly isn't a pony. Would it be disrespectful to ask what he is? I guess there's only one way to find out. "What's your species, Spike?" I ask him.

"Dragon." He says with some strength to his voice.

"Wow. A real life dragon. Where I'm from, dragons are mythical creatures." I say with a wide smile on my face. "I never thought I'd see one in my life."

"I never thought I'd see a human in my life." Spike says.

"I guess we were both wrong."

We share a laugh, then he burps. A green colored fire comes from his mouth then harmlessly dissipates into the air.

"Damn, that was cool." I applaud the dragon. I rub my chin. "Can you do that again? I want to try something." I hold out my left hand above the table, making sure to get it close to Spike.

"You're not gonna do what I think you're gonna do, are you?" Rainbow asks.

"Yep."

Rarity scoffs. "Colts will be colts."

"Yer an idiot, Mark. This'll end badly." Applejack says with a sigh.

"I don't recommend this, and I'm one for experimenting." Twilight says.

"I can't watch…" Fluttershy covers her eyes with her hooves.

"I can!" Pinkie pulls out a camera from nowhere.

"Are you sure about this?" Spike asks.

"Do it. My left hand is my weak hand, just in case this doesn't end well."

"So _that's_ what a hand is." Rainbow says. I see her elbow Twilight.

Spike blows out a flame. When it hits my hand, I definitely feel it. The temperature barely changes. It doesn't hurt, though. It's more of a tickle.

I pull my hand away and look at it. Not much has changed about it, except for a slight greenish discoloration. "Are you okay? Did it hurt?" Spike asks with sincere worry in his voice.

"No. All I felt was a tickle." I say. We all look at my hand.

"Dear Celestia…" Twilight says. "Would you… be willing to do some tests with me after we get back to Ponyville?"

"Yeah, sure. I think it would be best."

After a short time, we head back to Ponyville. The train ride feels shorter than the first one, since I don't think I'm headed off to get killed by a mad goddess. I do feel like I'm going to be tortured by a debatably sane Princess.

* * *

Fortunately, when we arrive, I'm not killed by a mad goddess. I follow Twilight to her weird crystal treehouse home. "For these tests, it would be best if you would take off your shirt." Twilight says to me once we get to a large, mostly empty room.

"Is it for the tests or do you just want to see me half naked?"

That gets a blush from her. Her face makes me snicker. "Yes."

I didn't imagine Twilight could be a smartass. "I can accept that." I take off my shirt. "Am I sexy enough for you?"

She studies my torso. "I've seen better." She laughs and swings her tail more than usual as she turns. If I was attracted to ponies, I'd take the chance to look at her ass. But I'm not, so I don't. After all, bestiality is illegal in Washington.

"So what kind of tests are we going to do?" I ask, tossing my shirt to the side.

"Since Spike's magical fire breath didn't harm you, like it does to normal ponies…" She trails off, then gets back on track. "I'd like to test if other spells can affect you."

"Alright. Let me know when you're ready."

"I'm ready." She gets into a stance like she's about to fight someone. Her horn lights up, being surrounded by a purple aura. It's like Luna's. I guess every unicorn's aura color is different, then. A beam of white light erupts from the horn and straight into my chest. It knocks out my breath and forces me to the floor.

Twilight trots up to me. "Are you okay?"

I hold up a thumb. "Yeah." I manage to spit out. It didn't hurt too much, but my chest will probably have a nasty bruise in the morning. "What spell was that?"

"Just an energy beam. If you were a pony, that would have pierced right through you."

"So you start off these tests by trying to kill me? Thanks, Twilight." I say sarcastically.

She sighs. "I just assumed magic wouldn't affect you as much as it does the average pony. Just from what Spike's fire breath did."

"Good thing you were right."

We wait until my lungs fill up again. Twilight sends another spell at me, this one being fire. It's not much different from Spike's fire, but Twilight's is definitely hotter. My skin is noticeably redder after the spell was cast.

The next spell is lightning. I've seen Star Wars, so my muscles tensed up before the lightning hit. It hurt enough to knock me to the ground and to make me cry out. Twilight stops the second she hears me.

"Should we keep going?" She asks nervously.

I get back to my feet after a second. "Yeah. I can keep going." I cough. "Any other tricks up your sleeve?"

Twilight looks at me with a worried look on her face. She shakes her head. "I'm going to save other spells for later."

"Are you saying you're done? I'm not." I flex my arm. Twilight blushes slightly at that.

She rubs her chin. Or is it muzzle? Excuse me for not being an expert on the anatomy of ponies. "We can keep going, if you really want to."

I nod. "Yeah, let's keep going."

"Only one more spell, though. I don't want to end up killing you."

I smile at that. "If you do, I'm going to haunt you. So what's the next spell?"

"Teleportation."

My smile widens. "Seriously? I hope it works. Can you do any time travel spells?"

"I… don't like to mess around with time travel." She looks to the side, then back to me. The way she said that makes me think she traveled through time. Lucky little pony. "Get ready, Mark." Her horn lights up like before.

"Ready."

A beam of light, like Twilight's first spell, slams into me. My vision suddenly, but briefly, cuts to white. The next second, I'm outside Twilight's house. And 6 meters in the air.

I land in a rose bush, which hardly softens the landing. I crawl out of the bush and Twilight appears before me. "Ow." I say. "Did you try to do that? Make me land in a rose bush?"

"I meant for you to stay in the house… I'm sorry." She lies down in front of me. Our noses are a few centimeters from touching.

"It's okay. Not the first bush I've fallen in." I stand up and so does she. I pull a thorn out of my arm. A thin line of blood comes from the small wound. I say. "So I'm not resistant to teleportation, or is it amplified or whatever?"

"Either teleportation on your body _is_ amplified, or I just put too much power into that spell… Would you be willing to try again? Just so I can find out?"

I shrug. "If you don't drop me into another bush, sure."

Twilight giggles. "I'll do my best. Would you rather land in a lake or a tree?"

"A lake."

She uses her spell on me and I teleport somewhere else again. This time, above and in the middle of a lake. Instead of being 6 meters in the air, It's only around one and a half this time.

After landing in the lake, I swim to the shore. Twilight's there waiting for me. "Huh… Teleportation doesn't seem to be affected by species…" She says.

"So when do I get to try time travel?" I ask, looking hopeful.

"Probably never."

I drop my head into the soft and very wet sand. "Aw. I guess I'd have to have a DeLorean or something."

"A what?"

"It's a reference to a movie from Earth. I'll explain it to you later." I get back to my feet. "How far from Ponyville are we?"

"Not very far. Do you want to walk back or teleport there?"

On any other day on Earth, I'd want to teleport. Part of that is to scare the hell out of people. Since I'm still new to Equestria, I think it would be best to walk and learn the surroundings. "Let's walk."

Fifteen minutes later, we're back in Ponyville. I notice how silent Twilight's being. Maybe I notice because Rainbow Dash still has my iPod. I become suddenly aware of how quiet everything is. I was suddenly taken from a loud, bustling city to a quiet, tiny town at the base of a slightly louder town.

"Are you okay?" Twilight says, waving a hoof in front of me. "You didn't answer my question."

"Sorry. I was focused on something else. What did you say?" I ask.

"How exactly did you arrive to Equestria?"

Ugh. I'm not comfortable with talking about this yet. "I'll tell you later. It's a long story."

Twilight reluctantly nods. "Alright, then."

The rest of the walk is in agonizing silence. When we reach Ponyville, we say our goodbyes and I head to Fluttershy's house.

Before I enter her home, I stop at a tree. The one I was at when I let Rainbow borrow my iPod. I lean against the tree. For something covered in bark, it's pretty comfortable.

After about 20 minutes of relaxation, a familiar cyan pegasus flies in front of me. "Hey, Mark!" Rainbow Dash waves to me. I wave back and she flies over. I notice that she has my iPod with her, which she somehow managed to clip to her. Do these ponies secretly have thumbs and pockets?

"Hi, Rainbow." I say. The pegasus lands a meter in front of me. She lands somewhat clumsily. I notice that she has tiny bags under her eyes. "Get enough sleep last night?"

She blushes faintly because of what I assume to be nervousness. "...Not really." She admits quietly. "You just have so much good stuff on your thing."

"I take it you mean that?" I point to the iPod. She nods. "Where I'm from, those kinds are called iPods. The generic term is just MP3 or music player." Rainbow Dash nods again, but I think she didn't really listen. Probably due to the lack of sleep.

"So, what's with the apple on the back of it?"

"It's the logo of the company that made it. They're called, fittingly, Apple." I say. "Not really my favorite brand, but I'm not the one that bought it. My brother did."

She looks at me, but not directly. Man, she needs more sleep. "You've got a brother?"

The question bothers me a bit. I've never really been close with my brother. A major factor in that is definitely the fact that he's a soldier, so I rarely see him. I hesitate to answer. "Well... That's kind of difficult to answer. I guess the best one would be 'used to'." Rainbow Dash looks away like she just hit a bad subject. "Oh, not because he's dead or something. We're just...worlds apart." I clarify.

Rainbow Dash looks back at me and nods. "Okay, thanks for clearing that up. I thought I..." She trails off. "Uh..."

I can tell she wants to talk with me more but on a different subject. "So, what was your favorite song?"

She shrugs. "I dunno what it was called. It went something like this." She began to hum a tune.

A familiar tune. A very familiar tune. One of my favorite songs.

Detroit Rock City.


	9. Thunderstruck

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. If you don't know why I ended the previous chapter with just 'Detroit Rock City', reread the first part of chapter 1. Also, a new MLP fanfic series of mine will soon be available on FimFiction. There will be a link to it on my Twitter account ( RattPitt) when it's available.**

**chipmunkfanatic - Yep.**

**Kyguy - Indeed I do.**

I remember being moved, but not for how long or in which direction.

My eyes focus on something white. It feels like the first time I met Epona. Am I meeting her again?

No. This is different. I know I have a body this time. It doesn't feel like I do, though. It's kind of like an out of body experience, but I'm still in my body. I feel like a radio stuck in between stations.

A sound echoes in my mind. It sounds like someone talking underwater. Am I dead?

The sound repeats, this time clearer. It sounds like a voice. The sound repeats a few more times until I can finally identify what it's saying.

"Mark?" The voice says. I know it's not Epona. She always addresses me with my full name, at least so far. "Mark?"

I try to say something, but the only thing to come from me is a moan. I sounded like one of those cliche zombies. Am I undead?

"Mark!" The voice says again. I can tell it belongs to a mare. Rainbow Dash? I feel a sharp poke in the ribs. Yep. Rainbow Dash.

"Ow..." I manage to say.

After about ten minutes of waking up my body, I manage to sit up with help from Rainbow Dash. I realize that I'm in a hospital.

"Are you okay?" She asks me. I can tell she really means it unlike those people that ask just to seem nice.

"I've been better, honestly. I've also been worse." I say. The familiar feeling of dryness is in my throat. Fortunately, there's a glass of water on the nearby table. I drink it all without stopping. It's extremely relieving. I could use another. "Sorry about that. I think I had a panic attack."

Rainbow Dash sits on a comfortable looking chair. She looked nervous. "...Was it about that song?"

I slowly nod. "Yeah. It's not your fault. It's just..." Oh, how do I explain this? It foreshadowed my death, to start.

She reached forward, cupping my hand in her hooves. Her hooves are warm, like a human's hand. I don't know if I should feel comfortable about it or creeped out. "You don't have to say."

I hold up my free hand to stop her. "Yes, I do." Oh, dammit. I've started and now I can't stop. Ugh. Alright, Mark, just choose a place to start. I should have chosen a better way to reveal my past. "You know that I'm not from Equestria, right?" Of course she does. I'm probably the only human in the kingdom, based off of what I heard the other ponies say. "I should say how I got here. You can let the other ponies know, since I couldn't before."

I started to explain what happened to me, starting from when I brought Dana out of the bar. I keep spilling my guts about everything that happened to the point of my car crash in horrible detail. She's visibly disturbed by it. I'm sure my face is the same as hers. I can tell she doesn't have any idea what most of what I said was, but she understood that I died in an accident. I don't tell her about Epona.

"That's..." She started to say. The pegasus was at a loss for words. "I... I'm so sorry about that. I wish I was there to help."

"Nah. Don't be sorry about accidents." I say, paraphrasing something Fluttershy said when we met. "There wasn't anything that anybody could have done. It just sort of...happened."

The pegasus lets go of my hand. I didn't realize that her hooves were so hot until the cold air of the hospital room surrounded my hand.

I decide to change the subject. "Did the doctor say how long I to be in here?"

Rainbow Dash looks up at me. "Hm? Oh, yeah. Just until you woke up. Longer if you didn't feel any better."

"I say we leave. It's really cold in here. It's probably because I don't have a coat." I say. "I mean, like fur. Not the jacket. Well, either would be nice. I just need more clothes."

"Then we should talk to Rarity." Rainbow Dash says.

I remove the blanket. Fortunately, my pants are still there. "Alright, let's go. Besides, I haven't had the chance to talk to Rarity much yet." I move my legs off the bed and try to stand. My balance is terrible, so I sit back down. "Dammit. Okay, give me some time." We wait a bit until my legs feel like working.

* * *

I follow Rainbow Dash to Carousel Boutique. I can tell why it's called that, what with the carousel on top of the building. I figure I'll see the boutique part of the name come into play inside.

"Want me to tell Rarity about… Y'know?" Rainbow asks me.

"You can if you want. I'd rather you do when I'm not around."

Rainbow nods and moves to the door. Instead of knocking, she just flies in, literally. I get that this place is a store, but didn't Rarity say she also lives here?

I push the thought from my mind and enter the building. As I expected, it looks like a boutique. There's pony versions of mannequins everywhere, some with clothes and some without.

Rainbow practically slams her hoof on the bell at the counter. "Coming!" A voice from another room says. Rarity walks out a second later. "Oh, hello Rainbow and Mark. I know Rainbow Dash enough to know this visit isn't for her, correct?"

"Yep. Mark needs clothes." Rainbow says.

"You two have come to the right place for that!" The smiling Rarity says in a chipper tone. "I'll just need to take your measurements, Mark, and you'll have to tell me which styles you prefer."

"Any special place we need to go for it?" I ask.

"No. Just here will do." A tape measure covered in a purple aura different from Twilight's floats over to Rarity. The white unicorn starts to measure various parts of my body. "May I ask what you did in Canterlot while we were at the cafe?"

"I talked to Luna, as you know." I say. "I did meet a prince, though. Not a nice guy at all. I think his name was Blueblood or something like that."

Rarity briefly stops, then continues to measure me. "Oh… I met him last year at the Grand Galloping Gala."

"The what?"

Rarity almost drops the tape measure. "You don't know what the Grand Galloping Gala is? I get that you're not from Equestria, but you don't know what the Grand Galloping Gala is?" She looks shocked.

"No, what's a gala?"

She sighs and Rainbow Dash laughs.

"But seriously though, what's a gala? I've never heard of one."

"It's a fancy dance." Rainbow says, flying over to us. "Dresses, tuxes, and boring music everywhere."

"Like classical music? On pianos and violins and stuff?"

"Exactly." Rarity says. "Do you not like classical, Mark? From what Rainbow told me about your… device, I wouldn't be surprised."

"Eh, it's not my favorite genre." I rub the back of my head. My arm is quickly covered in magic and straightened out. "I like some of the instruments, though. The cello and violin are probably some of my favorite instruments after the guitar. I tried to play them before I came here. They're not very easy, even with fingers. I can't imagine how hard they are with hooves.

Rarity stops measuring. "How could you even play any instrument _with_ fingers?" She sighs to herself. "The measurements are done. What sort of styles, patterns, and colors do you like?"

"I'm not too picky. I like denim jeans, like what I'm wearing." I gesture to my pants. "I like to have a few pairs of them. As for shirts and other things go, I like plaid as a pattern. I'd like a few button-up plaid shirts."

Rarity nods and writes that down in a notebook. She holds both the notebook and pencil in her magic. She catches me staring, but doesn't seem to care, like she's used to it. "Who designed your current clothes? They don't fit you at all, size and appearance."

I down at my clothes. "I don't know. They're mass produced. I bought these in a store."

"M-M-Mass produced?" She looks shocked and almost faints. "Dear Celestia, that must have been a nightmare for you! How do your clothes even fit? Is everypony the same size?"

"Yeah, mass produced. There's different sizes." I say, trying to make my voice as calm as possible. Maybe my emotions will rub off on Rarity? "Humans are different sizes. I'm pretty much average size for someone my age."

Rainbow looks like she wants to change the subject. "How old are you?"

"I'm 23 years old. Humans live to around 80 on average. I've heard of people living up to 120." I say. "So you're stuck with me for a long time. How long to ponies live?"

"It's different for every species." Rarity says. "Earth ponies live to around 70. Pegasi to 60. Unicorns, fortunately, live for 90."

"What about alicorns?"

She thinks about that. "I honestly don't know. I've heard of alicorns dying, but never by natural causes. Celestia and Luna have lived for thousands of years."

"And what about Twilight?" I ask.

"She's around our age." Rainbow says.

That would help me if I knew how old these mares are. If they're anything like girls on Earth, which they are so far, they'd get pissed off if I asked their age.

* * *

"I work fast, but I absolutely cannot make an entire wardrobe in twenty minutes." Rarity says after some time. It didn't feel like twenty minutes to me. These two are surprisingly fun to talk to. "Especially for somepony with such an unusual body… No offense."

"None taken. Just don't call me 'ape'. I've had enough call me that already." I say.

Rarity scoffs. "Just because you walk on two legs doesn't mean you're an ape."

"Tell that to Prince Dickface."

Surprisingly, Rarity laughs at that. Unsurprisingly, Rainbow does too. "I'll have to remember that next time I go to Canterlot. I'm not normally one to use profanity, but that? That is perfect for Blueblood. If I meet him, I'll say it to his face."

I smile at the thought. It quickly makes me laugh. I would pay to see it happen.

"Might I ask what songs you have on your device?" Rarity's voice takes the thought away.

"Why don't I just show you?" I hand her the headphones. She puts them on.

"You sure about this, Mark?" Rainbow asks. "I dunno if she'll like most of what's on there."

I turn on the iPod. "There's only one way to find out."

I look at the screen and skip to a random song. "Ooh. I like that sound. This stallion has a great voice." She says. After a second, she looks into my eyes with a smile on her face. "Did you choose this one on purpose?"

I look back to my iPod. White Unicorn by Wolfmother is playing. I can feel a blush form on my face. "N-No… It's coincidence."

"What song?" Rainbow swoops in, brutally murdering the moment. She looks at the screen. Then she starts laughing. "I totally bet that was on purpose!"

"I chose a random song!" I defend.

"How many songs do you have on there?"  
"A little over 400."

"And it chose the one that describes my appearance." Rarity points out.

"Hey, there's a band called Rainbow on here, but I'm not hearing her talk about it." I gesture to the pegasus.

She crosses her front legs while still flying. That has to be difficult. "I didn't hear anything by them when I listened to it."

"White Unicorn isn't the only song about horses that I have." I look through my iPod and read off titles involving horses. "Horse With No Name, Four Horsemen, and…" I stop myself and look at the screen. There's a song on here I don't remember hearing. And the title…

"What?" Rainbow asks. "Are you okay?"

I look up at her. "Y-Yeah. There's a song on here that I don't remember adding. It surprised me."

"What's it called? Can you play it?" Rarity asks.

"Uh… It's called…" I re-read the screen. "A Rose for E-Epona. I don't know how to pronounce the band name. Eluveitie or something like that." I start the song for Rarity. I run over how the song could have gotten onto my iPod. I had a Finnish friend that sometimes added songs onto this. Maybe he put A Rose for Epona on here. It's a little unnerving how a song about the creature that talks to me in my sleep got onto my iPod without me knowing.

"That's wonderful sounding. What instrument is that? It sounds very- Oh." She looks surprised and somewhat disappointed. "That got loud quickly." She takes the headphones off.

Rainbow takes them and takes my iPod out of my hands. She restarts the song. "It's good enough for me, Rarity. Listen to stuff that isn't just violins and cellos."

"I said I liked that first instrument! Do you know what it is, Mark?" She turns to me.

I take the headphones from Rainbow with some objection from her part. I restart the song. "I don't know. Maybe bagpipes. It kind of sounds like them" I keep listening to the song. I know I didn't add this song, but I silently thank whoever did.

After a few more minutes of talking, Rainbow Dash and I leave Carousel Boutique. It's almost dark already, so Rainbow says goodbye for the day and flies off into the sky. I wonder why she does that. From what I've seen in Equestria, I wouldn't be surprised if she lives in a house made of clouds. There's probably even an entire city made of clouds up there.

I head to Fluttershy's house. She's probably already asleep by now, so I enter quietly.


	10. Sick, Sick, Sick

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. I hope everyone enjoyed April Fools. I didn't. I got a bucket of milk dropped on me. In other news, I've noticed that I've a lot of non-American readers, so I'll be switching over to Metric measurements. And, as I'm sure all of you know, season 5 is coming out tomorrow.**  
**Kyguy - I'm not sure what song you're referring to. There's not any dubstep mentioned in this chapter. White Unicorn is rock. A Rose For Epona is folk metal.**  
The next morning, I feel absolutely terrible. It's not like a common cold. This is more like a migraine. A migraine, but centered in the stomach. I can feel pain spread over almost every centimeter of my body.  
What the hell caused this much pain? The experiments with Twilight is the first to come to mind. If that's the case, I would have probably felt this much pain after waking up in the hospital.  
Maybe it's what I'm eating. What I'm not eating would be a better phrase. I haven't had any kind of meat here. Yeah, that's probably why I feel like this.  
There's a soft knocking at the door. It slowly opens to reveal Fluttershy. She looks like she's hiding behind it. "M-Mark? It's almost noon… Are you going to have any breakfast?" I sit up, which upsets my stomach nearly to the point of throwing up. Fluttershy notices my pain and seems to share it with me. "A-Are you okay?" She asks, but I know she knows the answer. She steps inside. I open my mouth. My throat hurts too much to say anything. I shake my head. Fluttershy walks over to me and places a hoof on my forehead. "You're really hot, Mark…" She says in a worried tone.  
"I know." I manage to cough out. My soft laughter nearly tears my throat. "Ow."  
"I'd better get somepony to help." She says, then trots out the door with speed that would make Rainbow Dash jealous.

* * *

For what feels like hours, but is probably closer to 10 minutes, I just sit there being miserable due to the pain from whatever sickness I have. I'm probably overreacting, but I am in a lot of pain. It's not as bad as being kicked in the balls. I've been bedridden for days because of that happening Fluttershy walks in, with Applejack flanking her. She's wearing saddlebags. "Hiya, Mark." The country mare says. I wave at her. "Ah've got some medicines fer yah. Ah dunno what yer feelin', so Ah brough different kinds ah medicines. Food, too."  
"I'll just leave you two alone." Fluttershy says on her way out. "If you need me, I'll be downstairs."  
Applejack and I bid her a temporary farewell. "Now Ah'll admit, Ah'm not the best doc in Ponyville. That honor'd prob'ly go to Twi. She's busy in her castle, or somethin'." She grabs a bottle of medicine in her mouth and puts it on the bedside table. I notice that it's some sort of liquid. Ugh. I've always hated taking liquid medicine. I can take pills easily.  
Applejack pours some of the liquid, which is clear but slightly brown, into the cap. "Drink it, Mark." She says, noticing my hesitation. "It's fer sore throats." I pick up the cap and quickly pour the bitter medicine down my throat. I almost spit it out. The taste alone makes me want to throw up. I shudder horribly. "God, that's fucking disgusting."  
Applejack sighs and shakes her head. "Ah'd shame yah for yer language, but Ah'm used to it. Big Mac can get vulgar when he hurts himself."  
"Who?"  
"Big Mac's mah older brother. Macintosh Apple is his real name."  
So he's a sandwich and a computer. I chuckle at my mental joke. Applejack notices and looks slightly angry. "Sorry. I just thought of something."  
"Relatin' to mah brother?" She accuses.  
Applejack looks like she wants to fight. I'm not in any condition to. Even if I was, I don't think I could fight a pony. I've always hated animal abuse. Plus, I have no idea how quadrupeds fight. I'm somewhat used to human fights. I've seen plenty and I've been in a few of them. Since I don't want to fight, I hold up my hands in defense. "Indirectly, yeah. His name just reminds me of something from Earth." My throat starts to hurt again.  
She loosens up, fortunately. I can see some hostility in her eyes, though. "Okay, then…" She says. I doubt she believes me. "So, Mark. Could yah tell me some more 'bout Earth?"  
I nod and start to tell her what I told Twilight the other day.  
Near the end of my speech, there's a knock on the door. "Can I come in?" A voice that isn't Fluttershy asks. I recognize it, but can't place a name to the voice.  
"Yeah." I say. The door opens, revealing the violet Alicorn from before. The name comes to me. Twilight Sparkle. In my defense, I'm terrible with names.  
"I heard from Fluttershy that you're sick. Is it true?" She asks, studying my body.  
I nod. "Yeah. Applejack here came over to help out. She brought some medicine and food for me." I gesture to the Earth pony, who smiles triumphantly.  
"How are you feeling?" Twilight asks. I tell her my symptoms. "I'm not familiar with human biology, so I can't give you a diagnosis or even a prognosis. If you were a pony, the likely affliction would be malnourishment. Since you've only been here for a few days, I doubt that's the problem." She scratches the side of her head. Her eyes open and I can almost see a lightbulb over her head. "Maybe Princess Celestia would know! I'll be back." She runs out of the room.  
"So Twi's gettin' Celestia to help yah…" Applejack says. She sounds almost sad.  
I sit up. Judging from Applejack's tone, she wants to spend more time with me. "You've got an apple farm, right?"  
"Ah live in one. Why?" She inquires.  
"I could help you out around there. I don't have much experience with farms, but I can do my best." I say. She puts on a wide and arguably cute smile. "And we haven't hung out very much. I'd like to get to know you a bit more."  
"Sure. Ah can always use some help 'round the farm." She mumbles something under her breath.  
"What was that?"  
"Nothin'." She says. For somepony with the title 'Element of Honesty', I'm not surprised she's a terrible liar.  
I pretend I fall for it, though. "Alright, then."

* * *

Applejack heads out sometime after the conversation. Twilight comes in after the country mare left. The Alicorn has a letter with her, which she's carrying with her magic. I don't think I'll ever get used to living in a world with magic. And I can't even use it. I was so close to being a Jedi, too.  
"Read this, Mark, then come with me outside." Twilight says. She sits down and I read the letter out loud.

_Dear Mark Cleveland_

_It has come to my attention, via my faithful student Twilight Sparkle, that you have fallen ill. To find a prognosis, I read through my old books on mythological creatures for assistance. The information on your species was limited, but I may have found an answer. Humans are omnivorous, and you likely have had nothing but what ponies eat. No doubt is the food from your planet different. I have sent a letter to the Griffon Empire to request packages of meat for your diet. The meat shall arrive within two days. If meat fails to assist, I apologize in advance and will do my best to make you feel functional._

_Princess Celestia_

"I can see why Princess Celestia is a leader of Equestria. She's making sure each and every one of her subjects are feeling happy." I think out loud. Celestia's either doing that, or she doesn't want to feel guilty about the death of a mythological creature.  
Now they've all got me calling myself a myth.  
After a second, Twilight starts to look nervous. "I… I didn't know you were an omnivore. I thought you were an herbivore, like all ponies."  
The way she says that, I know what she's thinking. "Don't worry, Twilight. I won't eat you or your friends." I say quickly. She calms down noticeably. "I'd be a terrible person if I ate ponies. Especially one as nice or cute as you."  
She flinches slightly, like I just punched her in the face. "You think I'm cute?"  
"Yeah. I ain't talkin' 'bout love. You're cute in the way baby animals are. I think it's the color of your coat." I say. I don't want anybody or anypony thinking I have a crush on them when I don't. "Back on Earth, horses aren't violet, green, blue, pink, or almost every other color. Mostly brown, black, or white."  
Twilight nods. "I see. It must be hard getting used to seeing ponies of so many colors."  
"Very. Especially when one has every color of the rainbow on them. You know the one I'm talking about."  
Twilight smiles. "Rainbow Dash." She states.  
"Yep." I let out a sigh. "You know, Twilight, I'm glad I'm in Equestria now. Earth… It's far from a utopia. Equestria is far better than Earth. It had wars almost every year I've been there. The pollution was terrible. Humans were terribly over populated. There were over 7 billion on the planet when I got out."  
"That sounds terrible."  
"It was. That's just some of it. You know what murder is, right?"  
Just from her expression, I can tell she does. "Yeah… Fortunately, Equestria doesn't have much of it."  
"You're lucky, then. There's murder pretty much daily on Earth." Twilight gasps. "Some of the killers never get caught. There was a guy that sent notes to the police to taunt them. He hasn't been caught, and the killings happened 40 years before I came here."  
"Dear Celestia…"  
"Do you want me to stop?" I ask. I kind of hope she wants me to.  
She sincerely contemplates it for a second. "I want you to, but I also want to learn as much as I can about Earth. I guess… Tell me more."  
I sigh. "If you say so."  
I start to tell Twilight as much as I can about the darkest parts of Earth's history. I mention disasters, both natural and manmade. Accidental and intentional.  
"Are you okay?" Twilight asks, thankfully interrupting my speech. "You're crying."  
I wipe my face. "I guess not. I didn't even know I was."  
"You can stop now." Twilight says. She wraps me in a hug. It's honestly one of the most comforting things I've experienced. I return it after less than a second of hesitation. "Thanks, Twi. I needed that." I say after the hug breaks. "If you really want to know more about how shitty Earth can get, I'll tell you later."  
"I'll only want to know when you want to tell me." She says.  
I nod. I want to change the subject. "So… Celestia can move the sun and Luna can move the moon?"  
Twilight beams with pride, as if she can do both herself. "Yep! There's a reason why they're the rulers of Equestria. They're very skilled with magic and they're great leaders."  
"So, the sun and moon orbit this planet?"  
"Yes they do. Why do you ask?"  
"Earth orbits its sun and the Moon orbits Earth." I say. Twilight tries to suppress her expression that's a mix of surprise and confusion.  
"How?"  
"It's naturally. They or There's not any magic on Earth, I think."  
"No magic? None at all?"  
"Just the occasional person to come around and claim they're a magician and swindle the people of their money. Most of it's just sleight of hand or things everybody knows how to do."  
"Then how does Earth orbit its sun?"  
I shrug. "I don't know, exactly. I'm not an expert on that, but I'll do my best to answer. Earth orbits the sun because it formed there. There's different hypotheses for the origin of the planet. Some think it has to do with a nebula. Others think it's because of a deity. I don't really have an opinion, but I doubt it's the latter."  
"So you're an atheist?" Twilight asks. She seems to be truly surprised.  
I've got a perfect chance to bring up Epona. But I don't. "I was. I met a god just yesterday. I guess I'm not an atheist anymore, then. Oh, do you have a book on mythology? I'm curious about Equestrian myths."  
Twilight nods enthusiastically. "Of course, I do. I didn't believe any of the myths and kept the books around for fun. You could also tell us what we were right about in terms of humans."  
"Could you get the book for me? I won't be going anywhere."  
She giggles at my poor excuse for a joke. The Alicorn heads out.  
She comes back a few minutes later with a book and another letter. "Another letter arrived." The letter floats towards me and I open it up.

_Dear Mark Cleveland_

_I have been informed that you are living with Fluttershy for the time being. To lessen the burden of having to take care of a being belonging to a different species, my sister and I have commissioned a house in Ponyville for you to live in. It will be built within the week. I have another gift for you that I shall personally deliver within the hour._

_Princess Celestia_

"Like I said, Princess Celestia is very kind. Fluttershy's got some competition for kindest pony."  
"Princess Celestia was actually the original bearer of the Element of Kindness." Twilight says with a smile.  
"Really?"  
She nods, still holding onto that smile of hers. "It's true."  
Damn. I have even more respect for Princess Celestia.

* * *

True to her word, Princess Celestia stops by in less than an hour. Fluttershy and Twilight join me outside. I've never seen her, but I can just tell which one she is. Beautiful doesn't even begin to describe her. Her coat is white, similar to Rarity. Her mane is long and flowing, like Luna's. She has a picture of a blazing sun on her flank. I still need to ask about those. Her horn is the longest I've seen on a pony. With it, she's almost as tall as I am. If she wanted to, she could easily poke my eyes out with no difficulty. "Hello, my little ponies. And a fond hello to the only human in Equestria." She smiles at the three of us.  
I give her a bow. "Hello, Princess Celestia. It's an honor to meet you."  
"And an honor to meet you, Mark." She says, tipping her head slightly at me. "And you don't have to bow to me."  
"It shows respect, which you deserve." I stop bowing and I notice that Princess Celestia is slightly blushing. Damn, I'm good with girls. So why am I single? Probably because I've only been in Equestria for a few days.  
"The reason I'm here, Mark, is to give you a gift. You'll need it."  
She pulls out a small bag from somewhere with her magic. The small bag floats over to me. I catch it. It's heavier than I thought. I pull the string on it. The bag opens, revealing several golden coins. "What are these?"  
"These are bits. They're the currency Equestria uses." Celestia says. "There are 3,000 bits in that bag for you."  
"Damn." I don't know how much a bit is worth, but it sounds like a lot. The gasp from Twilight and Fluttershy, who I briefly forgot were here, implies that it is. "Thank you, Princess Celestia. Is there anything I can give you as thanks?"  
"Just your words are enough, Mark." Celestia says, giving me a faint bow. She spreads her wings, ready to take off for Canterlot. "One more thing: If you learn anything about friendship, write a letter and give it to Twilight."  
"I will."  
Princess Celestia takes off. I turn to Twilight and Fluttershy. If these two are anything like the girls I knew on Earth… "So, since I just got a lot of money, want to go on a shopping trip?"  
"Aren't you still sick?" Twilight asks, raising an eyebrow.  
"I got better." I have to force myself to not use a British accent. Twilight narrows her eyes slightly. "Applejack gave me some medicine. I guess it helped me already. Medicine usually works fast on me."  
Twilight's accusatory gaze drops. "I would be willing to. What about you, Fluttershy?" She turns around, discovering that Fluttershy somehow disappeared. Probably into her house. "Fluttershy?" She repeats. Twilight turns back to me. "I guess she doesn't want to go shopping."  
I shrug. "We can invite the others."  
"Rarity would definitely want to. I doubt Applejack and Rainbow would want to. I'm not sure about Pinkie, though. We'll have to ask her."  
"We should ask them all, then."


	11. Money, Money, Money

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. Good news, everyone. There's going to be an early chapter on Wednesday. Also, that new story I announced a while ago will be available on either this or next Monday.**

**Kyguy - I have the perfect chance to reference Pulp Fiction, but I'm not going to take it.**

I follow Twilight to Carousel Boutique. I knock on the door. It opens in a few seconds. "Oh! Mark and Twilight, what a pleasant surprise." Rarity says. "I nearly have your wardrobe complete, Mark. Are you here to see it?"

"No, actually." I reply. Rarity's ears droop slightly. "Twilight and I have a request for you to join us on a shopping trip."

Rarity's ears return to their original position. "Oh. I would love to. Give me some time to get ready." She closes the door.

I lean against the building. "Oh, Twilight. I meant to ask about the pictures on all the ponies' flanks. Are they tattoos or something?" I wouldn't be surprised if they were something similar. I've heard of cultures and even families where tattoos are practically mandatory.

"These?" She gestures to hers. "These are Cutie Marks. Every pony has a unique cutie mark. They display what each and every pony is skilled at."

I remember the Cutie Marks of the ponies I've met so far. "So… You're skilled at… Magic?" She nods with a prideful smile. "Rarity's good at… looking good?"

"Well, yes, she is. That's not what her Cutie Mark is about, though. It's actually about finding gems." She corrects

"Pinkie's good with setting up decorations? No, parties." I say. Twilight nods. "Fluttershy's good with animals, that I know. Applejack's good at farming." I think about what Rainbow Dash is good at. The Sonic Rainboom she did and her last name kind of imply she's good at moving fast. "Is she a racer?"

"That she is." Twilight says, giving me a metaphorical pat on the back. "You're good at that."

"What about the mare with the bubbles for a Cutie Mark?" I ask, referring to the mail mare with the wall eyes. Her name escapes me. "What do those mean? She's good at swimming?"

Twilight looks up in thought. "I don't actually know. I don't know her very well."

Huh. "If I see her, I'll ask about her Cutie Mark." Would that be disrespectful? Asking somepony I don't even remember the name of about their destiny? I don't think it would be.

The door of Carousel Boutique opens, revealing Rarity with a large bag and several smaller bags. I can tell the small ones are filled with bits. "I'm ready!" She says in a singsong voice.

"You don't have to bring any money. I've got some." I hold up my bag.

She looks at it, almost with a glare. "I can spend my own money, thank you very much." She says. "In fact, I have enough money that I'm willing to spend for the three of us, I'm sure."

"How much?"

"Just over a thousand bits." She says with a smile.

"I've got three in here."

Her glare shifts into astonishment. "W-What? In that small bag? How? And how did you get it so soon?"

"Princess Celestia was just here. She gave this to me." I reply. "I'm guessing Princess Celestia put an enchantment on the bag to make it bigger on the inside or something." Or maybe there's coins of different values. I know that the United States has bills over $100, but I've never seen one in person. Equestria could easily have bits worth more than just 1.

Rarity almost faints. "And I missed her…" Just in case she actually does faint, I take a step closer to her and get ready to catch her.

"She only stayed here for about a minute." Twilight says. "Only Mark, Fluttershy, and I saw Princess Celestia. Everypony else missed her, too."

That seems to reassure Rarity enough so that she doesn't pass out. Rarity lets out a breath of air. "Oh well… It's not like I haven't met Princess Celestia. It _would_ be quite an honor if I could again. Though, knowing Mark is an honor itself. I'm sure many ponies would do nasty deeds to even look at him for a second, and I am friends with you." She glances at me. I think I see a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Thanks, Rarity. It's actually pretty cool to be labelled a mythical creature." I say. Rarity seems to take my comment badly. I can tell by the faint look of discomfort on her face. "That's a compliment. Not sarcastic. Sorry if I said it harshly."

"Oh, it's quite alright, Mark." Rarity replies. If there wasn't a blush on her face, there is one now. I can tell this one's due to nervousness or something else.

Twilight jumps in. "Sorry to intrude, but aren't we going to go shopping?"

"Yes we are. Sorry. Got kinda lost in the conversation." I say. "Pinkie's up next, right?"

"Yes, she is. She'll be at Sugarcube Corner right about now." Twilight replies.

* * *

The three of us head to Sugarcube Corner. I get several different looks from ponies. Most are either looks of fear or disgust. I can count on one hand the looks that are remotely positive. One of them comes from Lyra. I'm going to have to talk with her later, if she's so interested in humans.

Fortunately, none of the ponies are trying to drive me out of town. I guess they don't have any pitchforks and torches.

When we get to Sugarcube Corner, Twilight knocks on the door. It doesn't open, but something pink lands in the bush next to the door. Pinkie sticks her head out of the bush. "Hi! What's going on?" She asks.

Twilight has a face on that says something along the lines of 'what the hell did I just see.' Rarity's implies that she's used to this kind of action. "Mark, Rarity, and I wanted to know if you wanted to go shopping with us."

Pinkie steps out of the bush and walks over to the door. "Not today. I have things to do." She opens the door. "Could you pick up some balloons for me, though? I ran out." Pinkie looks up at the balcony she fell from with a grimace.

"Yeah, sure." I say. "So, why did you fall from there?"

"It's the reason why I need balloons…" She says simply. "I'll need exactly 53 balloons."

"That's pretty specific. I don't know if they'll have exactly 53 balloons for sale." I've never heard of anybody selling such a strange amount of anything on Earth. I don't expect that to change with Equestria.

"I don't know of any stores in Equestria to be like that. Good luck, you three!" Pinkie says before phasing through the door into Sugarcube Corner.

I stare at where the laws of physics have just been broken. "What the hell did I just see?"

"That was Pinkie being Pinkie." Twilight explains. I use the term 'explain' very loosely. "Sometimes, I think she does that more than Discord."

"Who's Discord?"

"Just an all-powerful spirit with the ability to alter the world around us." She says with a wave of her hoof. "You don't have to worry about him. Fluttershy made him good."

Alter the world? Like that one guy from Star Trek? I think he's from Star Trek, at least. I'll admit that I haven't seen many episodes of it. I prefer Star Wars. "So where do Applejack and Rainbow Dash live?"

"Applejack lives at Sweet Apple Acres. Rainbow in Cloudsdale." Rarity says. Cloudsdale. Like Clydesdale. I manage to keep myself from laughing, but I can't wipe the smile from my face.

"What's funny about that, Mark?" Twilight asks in an almost accusatory tone.

Are there not any Clydesdales in Equestria? I guess it would make sense. I've only seen four different species of ponies here. "Ah, don't worry about it. It's just something that reminded me of something from Earth."

* * *

We head over to Sweet Apple Acres. Like I expected, Applejack denied the offer. At least I'm pretty sure that's what happened. The sheer size of the place kind of made me blank out for a bit. Since Applejack isn't following us, I'm assuming she said no.

After leaving the farm, we ran into Rainbow. She gave us the same answer that Applejack did. Once again, I'm just assuming. She didn't follow us, either.

"So, where are we going shopping?" I ask once my mind decides to function normally.

"Wasn't it your decision to go, Mark?" Rarity asks.

"You know Equestria better than I do." I point out.

"There's a small market in the center of town." Twilight says. "It's far from a mall, but there are some stalls I regularly buy from."

"Is this where Rainbow Dash almost accidentally sold Fluttershy?" Rarity asks.

"What? Did I hear that right?" I ask. "How do you accidentally sell somebody?"

"_Almost accidentally._" Rarity corrects me. "It's a long story, Mark."

I bet it is. "I'll have to hear it sometime. I also want to know more about that Discord guy."

* * *

I follow the mares to the market. They tell me the story about their last trip to the market. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how Rainbow 'almost accidentally' sold Fluttershy into what may or may not have been slavery. Maybe just ignoring that would be best for the state of my mind. On that subject, they also told me about Discord. From what I gathered from their description of his appearance, he looks like something either Pablo Picasso or Salvador Dali would paint. His mind is slightly more intact than Sheogorath's. Also, he was sealed in stone at least twice. The way Twilight and Rarity said, it implied he was sentient during those times. That reminded me terribly of that song by Metallica, One. Since the song is now stuck in my head, I find it on my iPod and play it.

Twilight asks me what the headphones are. Rarity explains it to her. "Mark, the technology from your world must have been absolutely amazing!" If we weren't walking, she'd probably have fainted by now.

"Yeah, it was pretty cool. There are ways to talk to people on the other side of the planet with these little rectangular things called phones."

She stops for half a second, then continues. "Phones?" She asks. For a second, I think she's familiar with them. I very much highly doubt she does. If so, they would have to be primitive phones from when they were first invented.

"Yep. Short for cell phones, which is short for cellular telephones. A few years before I came to Equestria, on Earth, they could only be used to talk to other people at distances. Now, they're used for pretty much everything. Playing games, taking pictures, calculating basic math problems, drawing. writing, and so on."

"Wow." Rarity says. "I'm certain they could be used for several types of business…"

"Definitely. Cell phones were pretty much just basic portable computers. Don't let the name confuse you. Computers do a lot more than just computing things." I sound like an advertiser.

"How long were these devices around before you… You know."

Before I died. I know why she doesn't want to say it. "Before I came here, you mean." Rarity nods with a twinge of sadness for touching on the subject. "They were around for around 50 years. The size of them, for both, has changed a lot. Computers used to take up the size of the main room in Carousel Boutique."

"By Celestia, they must have been very powerful!" Rarity says. Her eyes open to the size of dinnerplates. Mind the cliche, but it's very accurate. I feel like I'm in an old cartoon. The talking technicolor ponies would certainly be a hint.

"Very. Computers were actually made to be used to get into orbit around the planet." Twilight stops dead in her tracks. I do too, followed by Rarity. Twilight opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. "Are you okay?"

Her response comes a few seconds later. She shakes her head rapidly. "I don't know."

I smile and almost laugh. "I'll tell you more about it later, then. If just that gets you to be like this, just wait. You'll have to sit down for it."

"I would like to know more about your world as well, Mark." Rarity says.

"I can do that. I'll tell the other ponies, too." Rainbow Dash would definitely be interested in something that can send something into orbit. More specifically, the amount of speed involved. Applejack and Fluttershy probably wouldn't be too interested. As for Pinkie, I have no idea what goes on in her mind. Lyra would just want to know everything about Earth, if what I know about her is true.

Now that I think about it, I don't have a lot of friends here. Just Twilight, the other Elements of Harmony, and Princess Luna. I could find a friend in Lyra. The only other ponies I've met and know by name are Princess Celestia and that mail mare, Derpy. I don't think I could pull of a regular friendship with the leader of the country. Since that's the case, I could probably scratch Luna off the list of my friends. She's at least an acquaintance. Even if she isn't on the list, I still have more friends here than I ever did on Earth.

Spike is somewhere on the list. I don't know where to put him, though. I'd like to get to know him more. How many humans can say they're friends with a dragon?

Sometime during my ride on the Train of Thought, we arrive at the marketplace. It's not very crowded or big, and is certainly not Pike's Place. I can count the amount of shops here on both of my hands.

"I think the most necessary stand would be Colgate's. I don't think you've brushed your teeth yet." Twilight says. A blush forms on her face. "I mean, I don't want to disrespect you, but-"

"Yeah, I get you." I interrupt. Twilight's right. I haven't brushed my teeth since I got to Equestria. My mouth probably smells worse than Comic Con in a submarine.

The two mares walk up to a small stall. The unicorn mare working at it has a coat similar in color to Rainbow Dash. Her two toned hair is dark blue and ice white. I notice that her cutie mark is an hour glass, rather than the expected stethescope or tooth. She's also pretty cute. Why are all of the ponies here cute? Not that I'm complaining.

"Hello, Colgate." Rarity says to the unicorn at the stall.

"Hello, Rarity." The unicorn, Colgate, looks up at us. She almost jumps back when she notices me. Her breathing is heavy. It takes a second for it to return to its normal pace. "Did you talk to Lyra?"

"Sort of. She fainted after seeing me." I say. The memory of it makes me smile.

Colgate does, too. "She's gonna talk to you again soon. If I know anything about Lyra, she's got an interest in humans. I think Twilight's got some competition."

Twilight grunts. "I beg to differ, Colgate. I know more about humans than Lyra does."

"Maybe you do, Twilight." Colgate's smile grows. "I'm guessing you didn't come here to just talk."

"Right. Mark here needs dental work."

"You came to the right mare. I'll need you to fill out some papers, Mark." Colgate says. She hands me some papers, a feather, and an inkwell. I tell her that I already have a pen. The ponies look at my pen like almost like it's some deity's artifact. Ignoring their looks, I fill out the papers and give them back to Colgate. She takes them and tells me to come to the stall in a few days.

The next stall we go to is a general store. I get a straight razor and some shaving cream. Even if they had some of those safety razors that I'm used to, I'd still get a straight razor. One of the reasons is if I ever become a barber and need a few meat pies…

God, I need to visit a psychiatrist. Unfortunately, there aren't any around. The only other stalls in the area is one belonging to a blacksmith. A real blacksmith.

Twilight sees me nerding out over the thing that would make any fantasy fan nerd out. "Do you want to talk to her?"

Oh. She probably thinks that I think the mare working at the stall is cute. I mean, she is. The earth pony has a dark chestnut coat. Her mane, unlike most of the other ponies, resembles one from a horse on Earth. Her mane looks like it hasn't been taken care of. On a human, I find that to be attractive. From this distance, I can't tell what her cutie mark is. It's probably a hammer. Though, if Colgate is any foreshadowing, it could be anything unrelated to blacksmithing. Maybe a shoe, or something.

The smithy catches me looking at her. I guess I'm obligated to talk to her, now. I shrug. "I'll talk to her, I guess."

I walk up to the stall. "Hello, human." She says to me. I can't exactly place her tone. Bored is probably the closest I can get. "Yeah, I pay attention to the news. I also saw you looking at me."

"I'm still getting used to the talking horses." I say. "I haven't seen one running a forge."

The smithy smiles. "Get used to it. I just moved to Ponyville a few days ago. I've been everywhere, man. Appaloosa. Canterlot. Manehattan. Vanhoover, even."

"Alright, Johnny Cash."

"What?" She asks. "My name's Hammersmith Apollo, not Johnny Cash."

I need to remember to stop referencing things. "Right, right. So, Apollo-"

"Just call me Hammer."

"Hammer, then. What do you sell?"

She shrugs. "Hammers. Screwdrivers. Sledges. I make tools for construction."

Then I don't really have any reason to be here. I should get something so I don't seem like I'm trying to get Hammer in bed. "I'll take a hammer."

"Any kind you prefer? Ball-peen? Claw? Sledge? Lump?"

I only recognize two of those. "Uh… Claw."

"13 bits." She says. I give her the amount and she gives me a hammer.

When I return to the mares, Rarity looks at the hammer and shakes her head. "And here I thought you were developing a crush."

"Maybe I did. If I did, who's to say it was on Hammersmith over there?"

"And you even know her name. I think you do have a crush on her!" Rarity accuses.

I'm pretty sure Rarity's going to keep on this for a while. So why not have a little fun? "I've got a crush on somepony, sure. It's not Hammer, though."

"You've even got a nickname for her."

"It's not my nickname for her, _Rares_." I say, putting emphasis on the last word with a chuckle.

A deep blush forms on her face. She tries to say something, but just fumbles with her words. I laugh, and so does Twilight. "...Are you saying that you have a crush on _me_?"

"You say that like nobody's had a crush on you yet."

"No_pony_." Rarity corrects. "And I know that several ponies have had crushes on me before. It's not just exclusive to stallions. Or ponies."

I don't know any creatures here in Equestria that aren't ponies. Just Spike. I doubt she's referring to him, though. I mean, dragons eat horses. Although, after seeing him at the table and not seeing anypony freaking out about him kind of implies that's not how dragons act in Equestria. They probably eat something else. Gems, maybe? With Rarity's talent, that could easily be what Spike eats. He'd have an easy food source.

During my ride on the Train of Thought, I notice that the sun is starting to set. I also notice that I'm really tired. I bid the two mares a temporary farewell as I head to Fluttershy's home.

I'm too tired to engage in a real conversation with her. I will in the morning.


	12. Money for Nothing

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. Today is my birthday. Also the anniversary of a shit-ton of disasters. I also had a four hour test today. Lucky day, right? Reviews will be at the next chapter. In other news, I've been having some serious internet problems. As a result, chapter 13 might be released late.**  
"Mark Cleveland." Epona's voice says. "Are you enjoying your stay in Equestria so far?" It's been awhile since I've heard Epona's voice. After hearing that song with her name in it, it's also kind of weird. I realize that the singer's voice kind of resembles Epona's, but slightly deeper.  
"Yes I have, Epona. Literally every pony I've seen is cute. All of the Elements. Lyra. That dentist, Colgate. The blacksmith, Hammer."  
"Am I included?" Epona asks. I can't tell if she's joking or not.  
"Cute? Yeah, I would say so." She seems to blush. The atmosphere in this realm is kind of messing with my vision, so I can't exactly tell. Now, it seems to blur Epona's face enough so I can't tell any of her emotions.  
"Thank you, Mark Cleveland." Epona says, bowing her head slightly.  
"Oh, before you go. I was sick today."  
"I have noticed. I can say honestly that I aided in your recovery. I don't wish for you to spend your days in Equestria sick."  
"Agreed. Down with the sickness."  
"Indeed, Mark. Sickness is terrible. There are gods that are sickness ponified."  
"Ponified? Is that like personified?"  
She tilts her head slightly. Her eyes light up for a second. Her head returns to its original position. "Yes, Mark Cleveland. You will have to get used to the vocabulary that I, and the Equestrians, use."  
"I've been trying to. They've been helping me out."  
"Do or do not, Mark Cleveland." She says. She doesn't say it like how Yoda did. "Trying means nothing. Do or do not."  
"Yes, Epona. I will." I say.  
Epona nods. Her eyes light up and my vision fades to black.

* * *

When I wake up, unlike yesterday, I don't feel like I have to throw up. Despite this, there are a few bottles of medicine with a piece of paper next to them.

_Just in case. -AJ_

The note has terrible handwriting. It takes me a solid minute to identify the letters. It's probably because ponies don't exactly have hands. How do they even write? I guess they use their mouths.  
Now that I think about it, how do these ponies do what they do without hands at all? I get how unicorns and alicorns get by, but what about pegasi and earth ponies?  
Thinking about that is going to give me a migraine, so I push the thought from my mind.  
I get out of bed and into the kitchen. Fluttershy has already finished making food. She's living up to her Element. I mean, picking up a strange alien creature and letting it live in your house is pretty nice. It's also arguably pretty stupid. What if the alien's like General Grievous?  
I push that thought from my mind too. I would want to see General Grievous in Equestria. It wouldn't end well.  
God, I need to put my brain on a leash. It wouldn't get lost in itself so much.  
The food Fluttershy made, like always, is amazing. "Oh, before you go, Mark. There's something I need to give you. You're going to be moving out soon…" Fluttershy sounds almost depressed. I really want to hug her now. I mean, more than I wanted to before. Nothing is cuter than something already deemed cute being slightly depressed. "So… I've had a key to my house made for you. You can use it whenever you need to. Or want to. If that's okay with you, I mean."  
"It's okay with me." I say. She lets out a breath of what I assume to be relief. Her wings also unfold. "Thanks for trusting me, Fluttershy. You're a great friend."  
She smiles. "You are, too. I've only known you for a few days. I almost don't want you to leave yet."  
"I won't be leaving yet, Flutters. I'm still here."  
"You won't be for long."  
"You make it sound like I'm moving out of the country. I'm just going to be moving out of the house. I'll still be in Ponyville."  
Fluttershy starts to calm down a bit. "You're right… I'm sorry."  
"What's there to be sorry for, Fluttershy? I get it. You care about me. I don't think that's a bad thing. I care about you." To prove my point, and to satisfy some desires, I get out of the chair and hug the pegasus. Her fur is soft, like a pillow filled with feathers. Combined with the mild and comfortable warmth she radiates, I could use her as a pillow. She smells of chickens and, although faintly, strawberries. The combination is like my own little piece of heaven.  
The hug eventually breaks. "You're so… cold…" Fluttershy notices.  
"Humans don't have coats." I explain. "And you're so hot."  
Fluttershy blushes. I'm sure I do, too. That was an accidental pickup line. "Well… thank you, Mark." She says after a short, painful silence.  
"Hot in that warm way. I mean temperature. You have a high body heat." I try to say quickly. It doesn't seem to work. I feel like I'm about to die from embarrassment. "I mean, you're cute and all, but…"  
Instead of brutally murdering me, Fluttershy just smiles. Her mercy is cruel. "It's okay, Mark. I understand what you mean. Y-You're of a different species."  
I let out a sigh of relief. "Well, I'm gonna go out for a walk."  
"Can I join?"  
"Yeah. You don't have to ask. If you want to walk with me, join me. There might be some times where I want to be alone." I say to her after standing up. "That's only when I'm really depressed, though. Equestria's so happy that I don't think that'll happen."  
"I hope it doesn't. I'd hate to see you sad." "It takes a lot to get me that sad."  
I open the door and allow Fluttershy to enter first. Is it chivalry? Nope. It's noble. Since I've got the goddess of nobility, among other things, I'm kind of forced to be noble. It's pretty easy. I've been like that on Earth.  
The two of us walk along the outskirts of Ponyville. We stay out of Everfree. Fluttershy, when we first met, told me it's scary in there. I've never been very fond of being scared. Despite that, Halloween's always been one of my favorite holidays. I guess it's just stopped being scary. I mean, unless people dressing up as fairy princesses is scary.  
Eventually, we wander over towards Sweet Apple Acres. I remember something I told Applejack yesterday. "Fluttershy, I told Applejack that I was going to help around the farm when I got better. So…"  
She nods reluctantly. She looks down. "I understand… I'll go back home." She starts to turn away.  
Dammit. I think I made her sad. She's gone before I get the chance to tell her I didn't mean it like that. Should I stay here or should I go and get her?  
...I can go back to Fluttershy once I'm done here. I doubt it'll take long.  
I walk into the farm. Applejack notices and trots up to me. "Hiya, Mark. What's up?" I notice she's breathing heavily. There's a bead of sweat on her forehead.  
"I was just walking around the neighborhood with Fluttershy. We just parted ways." I explain. "I was wondering if I could help out around the farm."  
"Yeah, you can. Ah was just takin' a break from buckin' trees. Have yah ever bucked a tree before?"  
"I don't even know what tree bucking is."  
She looks at me with a puzzled look on her face. "So how did humans get apples offa trees?"  
"We just picked them one by one." I say.  
"That must take days."  
"I wouldn't know. I've never worked on a farm before. Well, not out on the field. I did work with a race horse once, though. I wasn't it's trainer or anything. I just helped feed the horse."  
"Was it fast?"  
I shrug. "I guess so. He wasn't a Secretariat."  
Applejack stops walking. At first I think it's because of what I said. Then I realize we're at the base of a tree. It has a few buckets at its base. "Well, Ah don't know what Secretariat is."  
"He was a fast horse. I'm not an expert on horse racing. He ran around a 2-ish kilometer track in less than two minutes."  
Applejack lets out a low whistle. "No wings, either. Damn. That's pretty fast. Tell RD about 'im."  
I chuckle at the thought. "She'd be more interested in Secretariat than she is in the Wonderbolts. I don't actually know much about Secretariat, so I probably shouldn't."  
"It'd prob'ly be a good idea tah mention 'im at least, though."  
"Maybe I will. So, how do ponies buck trees?"  
"Like this." She rears up her back half. She loads up her rear legs like a spring. They unleash, hitting the tree with so much force that I wouldn't be surprised if it broke. The tree actually wobbles. Damn. This pony is strong. I shouldn't get her mad at me.  
Adding to the awesomeness I just witnessed, all of the apples in the tree fall out and into the buckets. They're also perfectly filled up.  
"Did you plan that?" I ask once the shock wears off.  
Applejack chuckles softly. The blush on her face is faint. "Nope. It's just luck."  
I don't know if I can believe that. "If you say so." I walk over to a nearby tree with apples in it. "So, I just kick it? That's not how we got apples off trees back on Earth."  
"So how'd yah do it?"  
I shrug. "Like I said, I wasn't a farmer. We just picked them one by one."  
"That must take days! With buckin', the entire farm can be cleared in a day or two." Applejack says, beaming with pride.  
"Yeah, it takes a while. I'm pretty sure most farms have more than one able-bodied worker, though." I point out. "I think we've got machines that can help, too."  
Applejack puts on a pained face, like she just remembered something horrible. "Like those barbershop goons…" She says. I ask what she means. She tells me about these two guys that tried to take over the farm.  
"They sound like assholes." I say once the story is over.  
"Eh. They were. They were nice singers, though."  
"I would have to be the judge of that." I kick the tree. My foot bounces off without knocking off a single apple. I also hear something in my knee pop. It hurts a bit, but I can ignore it.  
"Y'okay?" Applejack asks. She probably heard my mild injury.  
"Yep." I say without taking my eyes off the tree. Just kicking it from here won't work. Maybe a running kick…  
I take a few steps back, then sprint for the tree. At a meter away from it, I jump and kick the tree with both feet. I fall to the ground face first. To say the least, it hurts like a bitch.  
Adding insult to injury, an apple falls on my head. It's also the only apple that falls off. "I'll just stick to picking apples." I say, pulling my face from the ground. I pull a leaf from my cheek.  
Applejack tries not to laugh. She fails. I'm sure if I was in her hooves, I'd be doing the same. I stand back up. "Y'okay?"  
"I've been better." I admit. I pick up the apple that I knocked off. "Did I at least look cool?"  
"For a second there, yeah." Applejack says. "It kinda went downhill after you fell on your face."  
I chuckle at my own failure. AJ joins me. "I guess that makes it good, then." The soft laughter stops in a few seconds. "Do I have any cuts on my face?"  
"Uh… yeah. A few." Applejack says. She observes my face. "Yep. You've got some cuts. Ah'm no expert, but those'll prob'ly scar."  
"They wouldn't be the first scars I've gotten from doing stupid things." I sigh and sit up. "They probably won't be the last, either." I stand up. "So… Do you have any different tips for getting apples out of trees? Or is there something else I can do to help around the farm?"  
"From what just happened, apple buckin's prob'ly not fer yah. The barn needs some paintin' done." Applejack says.  
"I can paint. It'd also give me more of a chance to meet the rest of the Apples." I'd like to meet her parents.  
I follow the country mare to the barn. It's not very big. My house back in Seattle was bigger. Applejack heads off somewhere and comes back with a few buckets of paint and some brushes balanced perfectly on her back. I take them off. Applejack opens up the buckets with her mouth. The color of the paint is red. Like most stereotypical American barns. The two of us paint the barn over a period of about two hours. She takes care of the bottom half of the barn and I take care of the top. The air is starting to get hot. Having lived north in a rainy area, I'm not exactly used to, or a fan of, the heat. So I take off my shirt. Even a blind man could see Applejack staring at them the way she's staring at me. I'm guessing it's either because I'm just really sexy, or because she hasn't seen me without a shirt yet and is just studying my body. I'm going to go with the former.  
"Yah might wanna show yourself to Twilight." She says to me. Dammit. I guess it was the latter.  
"Yeah, I probably will. That Lyra girl would probably want to see me, too."  
Applejack chuckles. "Yep. She might wanna see a bit more, if yah catch mah drift."  
"I think I do." I say. The thought of being naked in front of a creature with a fascination with humans is a little more than uncomfortable. After all, it's both illegal and a serious taboo on Earth. It's only been a few days and I'm still getting used to Equestria. Especially the talking ponies. It helps that they're all very human.  
Eventually, we finish painting the barn. I put my shirt on and follow Applejack to the farmhouse. Inside, there are three ponies at a table, all looking away from me. A large stallion with what looks like a wooden collar around his neck, an old mare, and a young filly without a cutie mark.  
"I'm back. Brought a friend, too." Applejack says. The three turn around. They're a bit more than mildly surprised to see something twice their size, four times in the filly's case.  
"Hi." I say. "I'm a friend of Applejack's. Before you ask, I'm a human. Not an ape. My name is Mark Cleveland."  
"Well, any friend of Applejack's is a friend of mine." The older one says. "Aren't humans myths?"  
"Not anymore." I say. If the context of that was different, that would have been pretty badass. I'll have to remember to use that line later.  
The big stallion turns to Applejack. "What'd yah two do?" He asks. He almost sounds depressed.  
"Painted the barn." Applejack says. She sits at the table. "You gonna join us for lunch, Mark?"  
Lunch already? Damn. I skipped breakfast. "I don't have a reason to say no. I'd like to, if it's okay with all of you."  
"Yep." The stallion says. The older mare and filly nod.  
I sit between Applejack and the stallion. "So, what are all of your names?" They answer me. The older mare is Granny Smith, which I should have expected. The stallion is Big Mac. The filly is Apple Bloom.  
The lunch is made entirely out of apples. I'm talking applesauce, apple juice, and even apple pie. Who eats pie at lunch? Apparently the Apple family does. Probably Pinkie, too. Although, she, despite her last name being 'Pie', seems to be more of a fan of cake.  
"So what's that 'round yer neck?" Apple Bloom asks.  
"Headphones. They're used to play music from the little speakers inside them. It doesn't hurt, depending on how loud I play the music." I explain.  
"Oh, have yah talked to Vinyl Scratch yet?" Applejack asks.  
A DJ? In Equestria? This place feels like it's in the 1600's. They've never heard of headphones, but they've got disc jockeys. If my English teacher lived here, he'd have a heart attack from this anachronism personified. Is it a personification if it's part of a land? There's a reason why I didn't do very good in English. "Not yet. Where is he?"  
"She lives in Ponyville." Applejack says. A female DJ, too? I'll be honest, I've never heard of a female DJ. I should have seen it coming from a place with a female to male ratio of around 10:1. "Ah dunno her address, though. You'll know Vinyl when you see her."  
"Alright. I'll keep an eye out." I say. We finish the food. Shortly after lunch, I talk to Applejack outside. "Was that everypony that lives here?" I ask, having the parents in mind.  
"Yep." Applejack says with a sigh. Oh.  
Oh…  
"Okay, then." I say, ignoring what was implied. It wasn't really an implication, though. With just that one word, I know her parents are dead. I don't know old Applejack is, but it must have been tough. Especially tough for Apple Bloom…  
"There are reunions, though, if yah wanna go to one." She says, taking me from my thoughts. Thank you, Applejack.  
"Maybe. I've never been to a family reunion, so I wouldn't know what to expect."  
"Yah've never been to a family reunion?"  
"Nope. Most of my family was in a 50-ish kilometer radius. We've never really moved around." I explain. "Although, before I came to Equestria," Applejack puts another pained look on her face, remembering that I died before getting here, "I had plans on moving to a different city. The one I lived in was very rainy. I wanted to live in a warmer area with less rain."  
"Rain can be tough. What was the place like?"  
"Huge. Bigger than Canterlot and Ponyville combined." Applejack gasps. "The place I wanted to live was over twice as big as where I used to live."  
"Celestia…"  
"Yep. Earth has some pretty big cities." I say. "The buildings were pretty damn tall, too. The tallest one in the world, in a city about four times the size of where I wanted to move," Applejack almost faints, "was a little over 800 meters." Applejack is speechless.  
"...You know a lot about buildings."  
I shrug. "It's kind of common knowledge back on Earth. Not a lot of my friends knew the heights of buildings, though." Of course, most of my friends were idiots. The rest of them were either high or drunk half of the time. I seem to attract a lot of people like that.


	13. A Day in the Life

**A/N: Welcome to chapter 13 of Rebirth. I'm still having internet problems, which is why I had to upload this on Monday rather than Friday. ****As for some good news, I have a new series out on FimFiction, hence the short chapter. My username on FimFiction is RattPitt. The fic I uploaded is called Fly on the Wall, so keep an eye out for it. ****All of my other future MLP fanfics will be on FimFiction. Non-MLP stuff, besides Rebirth, will be on this website.**

**TechnoNerdDefeat (11) - Cheese for everyone! I'm glad someone noticed the title theme I was going for. Keep in mind that the meaning of the songs won't necessarily be what the chapter's about.**

**Kyguy (11) - Dead or alive, I'd understand that RoboCop reference.**  
Shortly after lunch with the Apple family, I leave Sweet Apple Acres for Ponyville. I don't have an exact destination in mind. I should probably check up on Pinkie Pie. I haven't been giving her nearly as much attention as I have to the other Elements.  
Once I make it to Sugarcube Corner, I am tempted to knock on the door. It may be a public building, but ponies do live here. Ignoring habit, I enter the store. "Hi, Markie!" A high pitched voice belonging to a certain pink earth pony says, piercing through my headphones. I take them off. Pinkie, who just spoke, is behind the counter. Nopony else is in the lobby.  
"Hey, Pinkie." I say to her. "Is there any chance I could work here for a day or two? I just want to help around. There's no reason to pay me."  
"Yep!" Pinkie says. I think she's cursed to always sound happy. It might not be a curse, though. "Just jump on back here!"  
"No papers or anything I have to sign?"  
"Not if you don't want to be payed." She says, further proving that I'm really far from Earth. I've always hated signing papers, so I can live with this.  
"Alright." I say. I slide over the countertop like I'm in a 70's TV show. The landing makes it seem like I'm in a parody of a 70's TV show. For the second time in a few hours, I land on my face.  
"Are you okay?" Pinkie asks. That's the first time I've heard her in a tone that isn't 100% happy. This tone is at least 20% worried.  
"Don't worry. This isn't the first time I've fallen on my face today." I stand up. "Wanna know how I got these cuts?" I say. I explain the mildly embarrassing story to Pinkie. Pinkie laughs at my failure. It is pretty damn funny, so I join her.  
The chime of a bell interrupts us. A dark violet unicorn mare with a dark green mane walks in. When she locks eyes with me, she smiles. "Dear Celestia, the human is here!" She almost faints. "C-Can I get your autograph?"  
An… autograph? I get that I'm the only human in Equestria, but an autograph? Damn. I'm famous for doing nothing. I should change my last name to Kardashian.  
"Uh… Yeah. To who?" I pull out my pen. For some reason, I didn't leave it at Fluttershy's.  
The unicorn gasps in surprised. "M-M-Moonshine. My friends call me Shine."  
Moonshine. Like the a"Okay, Shine. Do you have anything for me to sign?" I ask. That rhyme was unintentional. She's too starstruck to answer. I never expected anybody, and definitely not anypony, to be starstruck over me. "Didn't have anything prepared?"  
"No… Uh… Can you sign my horn?" She asks. There's a noticeable blush on her cheeks, especially since her coat color is a severe contrast to the pink color of the blush.  
"Yes I can. Just get closer so I can actually reach it." Shine does and she leans her head towards me, pointing her horn at my face. If she took a step closer, it would be in my neck. I tap her horn with the pen. She almost falls to her knees. "Y'okay?"  
"Yeah, yeah. It's just…" She trails off.  
"Just what?"  
"Nothing!" She says quickly.  
"If it's nothing, why'd you almost fall?"  
"I didn't expect it to feel so good." She admits, blushing even more. As I've said before, and plan on saying even more, every single pony I've seen in Equestria is cute.  
Eventually, I manage to sign her horn. I have to hold it in my hand. She leaves without getting anything from the store. She says that meeting me is good enough. As she's leaving, I hear her say to herself she's never going to wash her horn. People actually say that?  
Once she's gone, I sigh. That was the first time I've given somepony an autograph. I'll probably have to do that a bit more often. I'll have to bring my pen around with me more often. I'm kind of surprised Lyra hasn't asked for one yet, since she's got an interest in my species.  
Pinkie, unlike me, didn't even seem to notice Moonshine. She's probably walking across her own plane of existence in her mind.  
Another customer walks in. The stallion is only mildly surprised by my appearance. I think they're starting to get used to a creature twice their size without any hair and walking on two legs. I'm still trying to get used to the creatures half my size covered in hair and walking on all four legs.  
As the customer leaves with his meal, two more ponies, these ones being mares, walk in. The one on the left, a unicorn, doesn't seem to be fazed by my appearance. The one on the right, a pegasus, seems to have a reaction that could either be fear or excitement. The pegasus hurries up and orders her food. The unicorn takes time to think.  
The way the unicorn was acting kind of makes me think she just smoked some weed. I lived in a place where it was legal, so I know what a high person looks like. I don't know if the same is for ponies as it is for humans. Hell, I don't even know if there's marijuana in Equestria. I'm going to have to find out, though. Not so I can smoke it. Pinkie could use some, though. She shakes more than a drug addict with withdrawls in the cold.  
That's not something I expected to say anytime in my life.  
"Is there anything I can cook? Serving is too boring for me." I say to Pinkie when there aren't any customers.  
"Yep! We're running short on cupcakes. They're selling fast today." Pinkie says. "You know how to cook, right?"  
"Of course I do." I say. "I'm not the best cook, though. I don't think I'm bad enough to set Sugarcube Corner on fire, so it's safe."  
Pinkie shows me to the oven, along with the necessary cooking materials. A few of them, I've never seen in my life. A few of them don't exactly seem to be cooking materials. There's an Erlenmeyer flask, one of those glass things with the conical body and flat bottom, among them. I get that a lot of subjects mix with each other, but I didn't expect Home Economics and Chemistry to be like that.  
I grab the flask. "What's this for?" I ask Pinkie before she turns away.  
Pinkie looks at the flask. "I dunno." She answers simply. "It's probably Twilight's."  
"Why did I not see that coming?" I ask rhetorically. "So, cupcakes. I can do this by myself."  
"If you need me, just scream!" Pinkie says, then bounces out of the room. Literally bounces. She's weird enough to be in a David Lynch movie.  
I shrug off the thought and put my headphones on. It's probably not safe to do that, but I've been around an oven more than once. Ready to Die by Andrew W.K. starts to play. It would be a good song to bake cupcakes to, if I was making them out of humans. Well, since I'm in Equestria, they would have to be made out of ponies. I don't think that would taste very good or go down easily.  
Holy shit, my mind is morbid.

* * *

A dozen cupcakes later, I open the oven. It smells pretty damn awesome. I take the batch over to where the food is kept and stick them there. Pinkie bounces in, once again literally. I'm just not going to question how she does that to keep my sanity intact.  
"Wow, Markie. Those smell amazing!" Pinkie says. Her tongue rolls out of her mouth and is dripping more than a dog. Take some notes, Ivan Pavlov.  
"It's a recipe my brother taught me." I reply. Now that I think about it, it's a little strange that someone in the military knew how to make really good cupcakes. The only thing that would be stranger than that would him watching a show targetted at little girls.  
"You had a brother?" Pinkie asks.  
"Yeah. He was a cool guy. I'm using past tense, not because he's dead or anything." I am, but I think Pinkie knows that already. I'm going to have to get used to the whole 'this is sort of the afterlife' thing. It's a little more than surreal. "You'd like him, probably. You've got pretty similar personalities. He likes to make people smile." The fact that he's part of the Canadian military wouldn't give you that idea.  
"I'd love to meet him!" Pinkie says, bouncing up and down on her hooves. Her legs are straight while bouncing. Are her bones made of springs or something? "I think he'd like to meet you, too." I say. I don't exactly know how he'd react to a talking pink pony with hair that looks like cotton candy.  
Pinkie smiles. It's large enough that the corners of her mouth literally go to her ears. Seeing a pink pony smile is uncanny enough. Seeing that smile hitting the ears is even more uncanny. I've seen worse in movies, though.

* * *

After giving the cupcakes and recipe to Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie pays me. I tried to go without any pay, but Pinkie's tenacious. I couldn't even convince her to pay me half. She could sell snake oil without the oil.  
I leave Sugarcube Corner and head to Carousel Boutique. I don't know if my wardrobe is complete yet, but I should check up on it. Besides, I haven't talked to Rarity much. I haven't been talking to a lot of ponies much.  
I enter the building, once again ignoring the urge to knock on the door. Rarity is just inside. She turns to me. "Oh, hello, Mark."  
"Hey, Rarity." I reply. "How's my wardrobe coming along?" I ask.  
"It's still incomplete." Rarity admits with a sigh. "I'm not used to working with your measurements and proportions. I've worked on only two other bipeds. They were actually half human."  
"Minotaurs?" I ask. I kind of hope I'm not right. I remember hearing the myth about the Minotaur in the Labyrinth. I'm not too familiar with the myth because it always creeped me out when I was just a kid.  
"Indeed, Mark. Have you been reading about the species of Equestria?" Rarity asks, sounding impressed. "No. Minotaurs are actually part of a mythology from Earth." I say. "So are unicorns and pegasi."  
Rarity smiles at that. "So if I were to somehow arrive on your planet, I would be treated as you are here?"  
I grimace slightly. I don't like the thought of what some of the sick bastards that call themselves humans would do to her. "Probably not." I say, leaving it at that.  
"Oh…" Rarity mutters in a downbeat voice. I think she understood what I implied. The white unicorn replaces her sad look with a happier one, like she has something else on her mind. She walks over to a small chest and opens it. "I nearly forgot to give these to you." A pair of blue shoes float over to me. "Your wardrobe is not complete, as I have said already. I don't want you to leave emtpy hooved, however.. They were made with suede. The material was very difficult to find."  
"Isn't suede a kind of leather?" I ask. "Isn't leather illegal in Equestria?" I'm just guessing. I don't know many of the laws here. Since some kinds of leather are made from horses, a pony wearing suede would be like a human wearing human skin.  
"Leather is illegal, yes. Suede is as well." Rarity says. "That does not matter with this suede, however. This suede on your shoes is faux."  
"Faux? That means fake, right?"  
"Yes. Well, no, actually. Faux is Prench for 'false.'"  
Prench. Like French. This world's France is probably called Prance, then. Even the names of the places are cute. "So how much do I owe you?"  
"None." Rarity replies. I raise an eyebrow. "Being allowed to simply work with your measurements is payment enough. Many fashion designers would do nasty deeds for such opportunities."  
"You're really willing to give up a lot of money just for that?"  
"Yes I am."  
"Well, I'm going to pay you once the wardrobe's complete." I reply.  
"Then I won't complete it." She says.  
"You're going to get money, Rarity. Like it or not."  
"Then I will donate the bits to a charity."  
"That's generous of you." I say, fully aware of the fact that she's the Element of Generosity.  
Rarity blushes slightly. These ponies are very prone to blushing. I still haven't gotten Pinkie to blush yet. Maybe I have and just haven't noticed it yet. That's entirely possible.  
"Was there another reason you stopped by?"  
"Not really." I admit. "I guess I could talk with you for a while, assuming you aren't too busy."  
"As much as I wish to take a break, I will have to refuse that offer. An old friend from out of town stopped in some time ago and commissioned some clothes." She sighs. "If I could help, I'd give you an offer. I don't know the first thing about fashion or making clothes." I admit. "Good luck, Rarity."  
"Thank you, Mark. Feel free to stop by tomorrow. I'm sure the wardrobes will be complete, or nearly complete, by then."  
"I'll be sure to do that, Rarity."


	14. You And Your Friend

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. My computer's still being stupid, but it's manageable. Also, as some of you know, I started a new fanfic on called Fly on the Wall. Keep an eye out for it. While it's still going on, chapters for Rebirth are going to stay a bit shorter than average. **

I wander around Ponyville aimlessly. I'm mostly trying to learn the layout of the town. It's nowhere near the size of Seattle, which makes my goal easier.

After some time, I bump into Twilight. "Hey, Mark." She says to me.

"Hi, Twilight. Are you doing anything?"

"I'm just walking and getting some fresh air. What are you doing?"

I shrug. "Wandering around. Memorizing what the town looks like."

"Would you be willing to answer some more questions?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay!" Twilight says. "I'm going to get a friend to join us, if it's okay with you."

"Alright. Who is it?"

"Lyra Heartstrings."

"The green unicorn?" Twilight nods. So that's Lyra's last name. "Yeah, she can come. Besides, it would give us a chance to properly meet." I say, recalling our meeting. Passing out doesn't necessarily make a good impression, but it will certainly make you remembered.

"I'll let her know. You can head over to my house while I go find Lyra."

"Alright. Is Spike over?"

"Yes he is."

* * *

I head over to Twilight's castle. Because I'm not an asshole, I knock on the door instead of barging in. The door opens, revealing Spike. "Hi, Spike. Can I come in?"

"Twilight's not here."

"I know. I just talked to her before coming over. She's getting Lyra so I can talk with them."

"Oh. Okay, then. Come on in." Spike says, opening the door further.

"So, what do dragons do in a land of ponies?"

"Others stay away. I'm a lucky one. I was born here, so I'm just like a pony."

"But in a dragon's body." I say, knowing where he's going. "You're Twilight's assistant, right? So what do you do with that?"

"I mostly find books and other stuff. I can also send letters to Princess Celestia or other ponies." Spike says with pride.

I can't help but smile at his enthusiasm and cuteness. Damn. Even the boys here are cute.

Are there any pickle jars nearby so I can open them up and regain my manliness?

* * *

The two of us talk a bit, mostly about Spike's past as what could be considered Twilight's little brother. Twilight and Lyra walk in shortly after his backstory ends.

"Wow…" Lyra says, looking around the castle. "It's so…"

"Big? Yeah, I get that a lot." Twilight finishes.

"I was going to say shiny, but yeah. It's also big." Lyra locks eyes with me and smiles. I wave at her. She trots over to me with Twilight on her tail. "Hey, Mark. How's it going?"

"Good. I just talked with a baby dragon, so that's cool." I say. "How are you two?"

"I'm doing great." Lyra says, trying to suppress her smile. The key word here is 'try.' The only thing her attempts did is make her face look like she just ate something sour.

"Alright, so let's ask some questions." Twilight says impatiently. "Let's go to my room for this. Spike, could you make us something to eat? Maybe some sandwiches?"

"Sure, Twilight." Spike says. He turns to me. "What do you eat?"

"I'll have what they're having." I say. I might regret saying that. I don't really know what ponies eat. Oats, or something. Carrots, too, I think. Whatever. I can play a non-deadly version of Russian Roulette.

I follow Lyra, who follows Twilight, to the violet unicorn's room. The two of them jump on her bed, which is pretty big. If I had to guess, the size would be Queen. Big for a human and even bigger for a pony. It's a good size for a Princess.

Twilight gets a clipboard and pen in her aura. I don't know where they were before. "So what kind of myths are there?" I ask, kicking off the discussion.

"A lot." Twilight says. "Lyra, would you like to ask the first question?"

Lyra, who's practically vibrating in excitement, nods frantically. "Is it true that humans killed dragons?"

"Starting off with that, I see? It's good that Spike isn't around." Twilight says.

I shrug. "Dragons were mythical on Earth. I mean, aside from a species with dragon in its name, they were. Those ones aren't anything like the mythical ones. Firebreathing flying badasses. Those were mythical, yes. There were also myths of humans killing dragons. I guess the answer's yes and no." Twilight writes that down.

Spike comes in with a plate of at least 10 sandwiches. How did he make them that fast? Twilight takes the plate in her aura and thanks him. Spike leaves the room. "Did humans make things by hand?" She asks.

"Yep, for the most part."

"What do you mean, 'for the most part?'" Lyra asks.

"Humans made things called robots, which are things made of metal that can be told what to do, that can make things that are too hard to make by hand. Things like automobiles or other robots. They're also used to handle dangerous things, like stuff that's radioactive or really hot."

"Wow." Twilight says, writing that down. "Do you know how to make a robot?"

"Not really." I admit. "I'm not really good at making things by hand."

"Did you have magic or wings?" Lyra asks.

"No. Magic didn't exist on Earth. I'm pretty sure, at least. Some could argue that computers are kind of magical." I say. I think I see Twilight nod in agreement. I know I didn't, though. There's no way she's seen a computer. "As for wings, we didn't have any. We've wanted them pretty much all the time, though. We've managed to build things called airplanes, which are basically giant metal birds that can hold people inside." I give a quick description of planes.

"That's… amazing." Twilight says. She remembers to write that down. "How long were they around?"

"Before I came here, you mean?" Twilight nods. "A little over 100 years. Good ones, by my description, came around about 50 years before I came to Equestria." I say.

"Did you have any music?" Lyra asks.

I smile. "Of course we did. I've actually got some." I show her my iPod. "Want to listen to some?"

"Yes." She says. I hand her my iPod and headphones and tell her how it's used.

Twilight sighs. "Okay… I guess that counts as a 'myth.' Did humans follow any deities?"

"Yeah. Some follow many. Some follow one. Some don't follow any. Some don't know who they follow. Some just don't care. Didn't you ask this before?"

"Sort of." Twilight admits. "Did you believe in any deity?"

"Before coming here, no." I say, having Epona in mind.

"What do you mean?" Twilight asks.

I still don't want to bring up the fact that I talk to a literal goddess in my dreams. "Aren't Princess Celestia and Princess Luna goddesses?"

Twilight smiles. "That's debateable. I consider them to be." She sighs. "And then there's Discord and Tirek…"

I've heard of Discord, but not Tirek. "Who?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know about Tirek." She says hastily.

She turns to Lyra, who still has my headphones on. Lyra is bobbing her head to the tune of the song I can't hear. Twilight taps her forehoof. Lyra turns to her and takes off the headphones. "What?" Twilight points to me. "Oh. Uh… Is it true that humans hunt for food?"

I sigh. I knew I'd have to answer that question eventually. "Yeah. Just animals like deer and elk, mostly. Never ponies or horses, so don't worry about it."

Lyra looks scared. "I… I meant stuff like berries…"

"Oh. Fuck. Oh. Well, we do that, too." I say sheepishly. It doesn't help her expression. "Lyra, I never hunted any animals. Most people hunted only for food, alright? _Only_ for food. _Only_ if they were desperate for it."

That calms her down slightly. "Okay…" She says. She looks down.

"I think that's all we should do for now." Twilight says, fully aware of what Lyra's feeling. I would do the same if I was in her position. "If you want to do this again, Lyra, please tell us. I'm sure Mark would be willing to do this again."

I lean forward and put a hand on Lyra's shoulder. She jumps and blushes slightly at the touch. "I would. I'll be careful of what I say around you from now on."

Lyra looks back up at me and smiles. "Thanks, Mark." She jumps off the bed. She gives me back my headphones. "I'll come back later. I don't know when." She trots out the door.

I lean back and sigh. "I can be so stupid sometimes." I admit, mostly to myself.

"That wasn't stupid, Mark. Sure, maybe a little callous on accident, but not stupid. It was a mistake. You shouldn't worry about mistakes."

"I try not to." I say. "Wait, what does callous mean?"

"Don't worry about it." Twilight says quickly. She looks around. I can tell she's trying to change the subject.

"Whatever."

"Uh… Did you get your house from Princess Celestia yet?"

"Not yet. Probably soon, though. I don't even know where I'll be at yet."

"I'd be willing to wager that it's going to be close to my house." Twilight says with a smile. "I'd like it to be, at least."

"I'd also like to be close to here. Close to the middle of Ponyville, I mean. Partially so I won't half to walk half way across the town to get a sandwich." I say.

"That reminds me. Have you been to any restaurants yet?"

"Not yet." I reply. "Do you recommend any?"

"I like Hay King."

"Hay King?"

"Yeah. It's a restaurant that has amazing hay burgers. They call them Mammoths. Fitting name, because they're really big." Hay burgers… They probably won't go down my throat comfortably. "There's also Colt in the Box as an alternative."

I don't like how that sounds. "Hay King's fine."

* * *

I follow Twilight to Hay King. Twilight orders a Mammoth. I do too, mostly out of experimentation. Also, I have no idea what else they have. The burger is bitter, but better than I expected. The hay is edible, but a major contribution to the bitter taste. "What do you think of it?" Twilight asks after I finish the burger.

"Not the best." I admit. Twilight looks a little disappointed. "Hey, don't blame me. Blame my biology. I've never had hay before."

"It's good to experiment, though. Wouldn't you rather find out you don't like something than never find it out?"

"Yeah, I would." I say. She's got a point. Humans wouldn't have made it very far if they never experimented. We'd probably still be living in caves and have nothing to cook meat. My stomach growls at the thought of meat. I look at it as if to say 'shut up belly, you had your chance.'

"Still hungry?" Twilight asks.

"Yeah. Sorry, but that hay burger wasn't very filling." I admit.

"What's there to apologize about? It's a biological thing, right? You don't eat hay. I'm sure we have food here in Equestria that you eat."

"Well, Princess Celestia did say she'd get meat from somewhere else." I reply. "So yeah, there is stuff for me to eat here."

"I was talking about foods that are easier to obtain. Like apples."

I nod. "Yeah, humans eat apples. It's a shame there isn't a place around that farms apples. It's an even bigger shame that said farm isn't 100 meters away."

Twilight giggles. "Quite the shame, indeed."

"Indeed?"

"Indeed."

"Okay, then." I say. I'm not going to judge her use of archaic words. It's fitting for her smart personality, but I don't want to, or expect to, hear her reciting Shakespearean quotations. Except she would need a skull for that. 'Alas, poor Rainbow. I knew her, Celestia.'

"So, should we head over to Sweet Apple Acres?"

"I think I'll be alright."

"Are you sure?"

"I think so. Humans can go around two weeks without food." I think it's two weeks, at least. I've never gone more than two days without food. That was a pretty bad weekend.

"So, you're like camels." Twilight smiles.

I've never heard that comparison. "In that sense, yeah. We can only go around three days without water, though."

"I take that back, then."

* * *

The night arrives shortly after. It's too dark for me to comfortably walk to Fluttershy's, so I stay over at Twilights for the night.

"Have you ever played chess?" Twilight asks.

"A few times with my brother. I'm no expert. Do you want to play?"

"Yeah. I don't get many chances to." She rubs the back of her neck.

"Alright. Let's play."

Twilight gets a chessboard out and we set up the pieces. "I'll go easy on you." She says and moves a pawn forward. I start off with a knight. "Ooh. Interesting tactic." Twilight says. She moves her pawn again. I have the chance to take her pawn out with my knight, which I take.

The rest of the game is short. I manage to win. It's actually the first time I've ever won a chess game. "Haha! In your face, Twilight."

Twilight smiles. "Want to play again?"

"It's your funeral."

* * *

The next game ends a few short minutes later. I'm still amazed that she managed to put me in checkmate in only eight moves. I couldn't even take a pawn of hers. She took out my queen and both of my bishops. She could have taken me out in four turns, but I guess she just wanted to rub it in.

I guess it's karma.

"Mark, have you ever looked at the night sky? I know you mentioned you lived in a city." Twilight says, changing the subject.

"Yeah, I did. And no, I haven't really seen the sky here yet." I say.

She smiles. "You should. It's an amazing sight."

We both stand up. I walk out onto the balcony and look at the sky. "Holy shit…" I say. I try to say something more, but I can't. I've never seen anything even remotely like the night sky in Equestria. It's covered with stars. There's easily over a million stars in the sky.

There's a band of gas similar to a nebula going all the way across the planet, almost like a ring. I realize that it's the galaxy itself. There's even a faint blue aurora going on far in the north.

"Never seen anything like this?" Twilight asks.

I shake my head. I'm still stunned by all of these stars. I've seen pictures of the night sky, but seeing it in person is amazing. I feel a smile form on my face. I don't hold it back. "No. I've never seen the sky like this. It's probably because of all the light in Seattle. I don't think I've ever seen more than 20 stars at once."

"Really?"

"Really." I wonder what Los Angeles or Dubai were like at night. They were probably as bright at night as they were at day. "I think seeing the sky like this just once is worth dying for. Just all of these stars and that aurora there… It's beautiful. Seeing this in person is thousands of times better than seeing a picture, and even pictures of this are beautiful."

"This is actually a pretty common sight in Equestria, Mark."

"Damn. I wish I was born here." Being reborn here is an acceptable alternative. "Are there any uncommon sights that I should see?"

Twilight strokes her muzzle. "There is a rare event called ball lightning."

"I think I've heard of that. Is it that thing where there's lightning floating around the air?"

"Yes."

"I don't think I've even seen pictures of that. Just descriptions." I say, still looking up at the sky. "Anything else?"

"Changelings."

"What?"

"Changelings." Twilight repeats. Her voice has a mix of hatred and depression in it. I never expected to hear either of those coming from her. "They're creatures that can shift their appearance. They look like insectoid ponies when not in anypony's form."

"Damn." I say. I think about that for a second. I might have encountered a changeling already. I hope not. If I haven't been paranoid before, I am now.

"You don't have to worry about them, Mark." Twilight says, sensing my paranoia. "They aren't very common."

"Ugh. Good." I sigh.


	15. Welcome Home

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. There isn't much news this week, other than that the Kentucky Derby, a world famous horse race, is tomorrow. Also, I keep forgetting to say this, but I don't have any way of watching season 5 yet. If there are ways to catch some episodes online, please let me know. As for some minor news, I've changed the genre to Romance/Adventure rather than Adventure/Romance. I've reviewed the notes I have for future plans. There's more romance in the future. Adventure's coming in a long time after romance is. There still won't be any clop. If you want porn, then just watch porn. I'm not making any.**

**Guest (13) - Blueblood has appeared, but I probably won't kill him off. You're actually not the first to request that of me.**

**Kyguy - Sometimes the author and character have different opinions on things. I like changelings.**

"So should I spend the night over here?" I ask.

"I would say so." Twilight says. "You are, in all technicalities, homeless. Where else could you go?"

"Fluttershy's."

"Oh, yeah. You did stay there the first few days you were here." Twilight scratches her muzzle. "We're going to need a find a place for you to sleep. I only have one bed."

"Do you have a couch I can sleep on?"

"I do. It's small, though."

"I'll take it."

"No. It's too small. I won't let you be uncomfortable. You're a guest. Guests shouldn't be uncomfortable." Twilight flashes a smile. "That, and you're a mythical creature. In my house…" She says that last part like a teenage girl that just met her favorite musician or actor. I know I'm pretty good looking, but am I seriously that sexy?

"You own this place. You should be comfortable. Besides, you own the bed."

Twilight sighs. "Why don't we both take the bed? I'm sure we'll both fit on it."

I can feel my cheeks warm up. "Are you just trying to get me in bed with you?"

"Huh?" She thinks about it for a second. Her cheeks instantly turn to the shade that would make a tomato impressed. "Dear Celestia, Mark! You're more immature than Rainbow Dash."

"You said it, not me."

20 minutes later, I fall asleep on Twilight's bed. She falls asleep next to me.

* * *

The next day, I wake up next to a letter rather than Twilight. It's rolled up with a red ribbon keeping it that way. I open up the letter and read it.

_Dear Mark Cleveland_

_I have previously informed you that you will soon be the owner of your own house. By the time you receive this letter, you should legally be the owner of the house. I have arranged it so that your new home is south a short ways away from Twilight Sparkle's castle. You will know it when you see it._

_Princess Celestia_

I'll be honest. I was expecting something from Twilight telling me where she went. I step out of the bed and stretch. I've never been much of a morning person. Since I'm now living in a world with a goddess that can move the sun, I should probably get used to the morning.

I grab the letter, fold it, and put it in my pocket. I put my shoes on then leave the castle. I will also have to get used to the fact that one of my friends has a castle made out of crystal.

I'm just going to have to get used to a lot of things. I think I'm finally used to the talking technicolor ponies and mythical creatures. Magic is something I'll have to get used to. It's definitely cool. I'm not going to study how to use it or anything. I know that humans can't use any magic. Although Epona might have done something to my body during the arrival to Equestria… I'll have to ask that of her tonight.

I walk down the road of Ponyville, heading south. A building catches my eye. It's larger than most other houses. It's three floors as opposed to the average of two in Ponyville. This building is a dark violet, similar to the coat of Princess Luna. It's a sharp contrast to the lightly colored buildings in Ponyville. As for the shape, it's not very different from the others.

The letter said my house was south of Twilight's castle and that it would catch my eye. The other buildings aren't anything special, so this must be my new place.

I enter the building. There are a few ponies inside with construction gear on. "Hey, he's here." One of them says to another. He has a thick New Yorker accent. He turns to me. "We jus' finished here. You're free to take over."

"No furniture?" I ask.

"Nah. We're construction workers, not home decorators."

"Alright, then." I say. The workers walk out of my new house. I haven't had a place with no furniture yet. Since I've got approximately one shit ton of money, I'll be able to prevent that fact from changing.

* * *

I had to wander across Ponyville before finding a furniture store. I had enough to buy a Queen sized mattress without a frame and a small couch.

The company is kind enough to ship them to my house by themselves. It's probably because I've met three Princesses so far. That, or it's just what the company does. Either way, I give them a tip. That leaves me at a little under 100 bits. Damn. Those were expensive.

Shortly after the mattress and couch are put in my home, there's a knock at the door. I open it. "Hey, Rainbow." I say to the hovering cyan pony. "What's up?"

"Not much. I was just in the neighborhood." I have to resist the urge to laugh. I doubt that pun was intended. "I saw you coming into this house. I knew it wasn't owned and I heard you were getting your own."

"So you stopped by." I finish for her. "You're pretty fast. I just got this place a few minutes ago. The couch is also new." I gesture to it.

"Cool. Can I come in?" She asks.

"Yeah. There isn't much to look at. Just the couch and a mattress."

Rainbow lands and steps inside. She stretches her back and wings. "Can I see it? I'm pretty beat."

I nod. "I don't see why you can't."

She follows me to what will eventually be the bedroom. She jumps onto the bed and lands on her stomach. Rainbow moves her limbs around, probably to get more comfortable. "Eh. It's not as comfortable as some beds I've been in."

I lie down next to her. "Me too, Rainbow. It's definitely the biggest I've owned, though."

"Hey, do you still have that music thing?"

"Yep. Want to listen?" She nods. I put the headphones on her and play a random song. We sit there for a few minutes before either of us say anything else.

"You've got a lot of these loud songs." Rainbow says, breaking the silence.

"Yeah. I'm generally a metal fan. I don't have just metal on here. There's other genres for other moods. I've got some pop on here. A few techno songs. I think there's a classical song on here."

"Classical's too boring for me. It's all too slow and… boring. It's stuff I'd fall asleep to." She says.

I raise an eyebrow. "You think classical's boring, eh?" I ask. I grab my iPod and rummage through the songs.

"What are you doing?" She asks.

I find the song I was looking for. Requiem by Verdi. "Listen to this. It's classical." I play the song.

The instant I hit the play button, Rainbow's eyes widen. During the entire song, she doesn't say a word. "Okay. You've proven your point." She says after the song ends.

I smile. "It's what I do." Another song starts.

After some time, I notice that I'm stroking her mane like how I would with a cat. I keep doing it. Rainbow's mane is like silk. I guess it makes sense. Silk is smooth, and therefore aerodynamic.

Her wings suddenly unfold and almost hit me in the face. "Whoa, Mark. Slow down." Rainbow says. She looks at me with a slightly agitated look, and a very deep blush, on her face.

"What?" I ask. "Did I do something wrong?"

She sighs in frustration. "Just don't rub there." She says. "Mane's okay. Neck and back isn't."

"Oh, sorry. I didn't even realize I was doing that." I go back to stroking her mane and think about what she meant. The neck and back, at least for pegasi, are probably erogenous zones. I don't know how I'd find out for certain. I could just walk up to a pegasus, say 'does this turn you on?', then touch their wings, but that wouldn't be very subtle.

"That's better." Rainbow says. After a few seconds, she rests her head on my knee. She lets out a sigh of relief. "You could seriously be payed for this, Mark. I know a few ponies that would love to be in my position right now. Lyra, for one. Mostly for a chance to be with a human for a while." She says, seemingly forgetting about what just happened.

"Maybe I should. I'm kind of running low on money." I say. Fortunately, this isn't exactly a rich mare's world.

Rainbow scratches her muzzle with her hoof. "Twilight might like it, too."

"I was actually with those two earlier. I didn't get the chance to do this to them, though."

"What were they doing? I mean, what pony wouldn't want this?" She says.

"Talking about what humans do on Earth. More specifically, what myths about them that are true."

"I should have seen that coming."

"Do they do that a lot?"

"Nah. Not really. I think it's just when a mythical creature stops by."

I laugh. "It'd give them an excuse to talk about it, at least."

Rainbow nods with a smile. "Oh, have you talked to Vinyl Scratch yet?"

"The DJ?" Rainbow nods. "Not yet. Applejack told me a bit about her. Just that she's a DJ and I'll know her when I see her."

"You will. Spikey dyed hair."

"Like yours?"

"Mine isn't dyed." She says, sounding a bit annoyed. How the hell is her hair not dyed? "And hers is longer and just blue. Besides, mine's cooler." She blows some bangs out of her eyes. "But yeah, Vinyl would like some of the stuff on here."

"I'll have to talk to her later, then."

After a few minutes, the iPod stops in the middle of a song. "What happened? Did you pause it?" Rainbow asks.

I hold it up. "No. The battery died." I sigh. "Oh well. I'll charge this damn thing up and you can come back later."

She stands up. "Alright. I'll be back in a few hours." She goes outside and I follow her. Rainbow Dash waves goodbye and flies off to her home in the clouds. With the lighting reflecting off her coat, she looks beautiful.

...Did I seriously just think that? I think I did.

...Am I falling in love with Rainbow Dash? With a _pony_?

No. Not exactly. I'm just becoming more… fond of her. Yeah. That's it. Even if I am falling for her, is she even into guys? The mane kind of implies that she isn't. I'll have to ask her about it later. I've dealt with asking a girl about her sexuality a few times before. Most of the times, it didn't end well for me.

Although, Rainbow is different from most girls I knew on Earth. Rainbow's much more sporty and blunt. Not to mention her appearance. I mean, all those strong muscles and her beautiful eyes and those-

Dammit, Mark. Stop thinking about her. Even if she's straight, she's probably got a stallionfriend. If she does, I wouldn't be surprised. I mean, who wouldn't want somepony as attractive as Rainbow Dash?

I've got to stop doing that… Okay, I need something to take my mind off of a certain pegasus. I haven't been to Sugarcube Corner in a while.

I make my way there. Pinkie's there and I take my order. After a brief conversation, I start to eat, which starts to take my mind away from Rainbow.

Then I start to think about her. Due to my frustration with myself, I hit my head on the counter. My forehead hits the edge, causing me to cry out in pain.

"Are you okay, Markie?" Pinkie asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I say, rubbing my head. "It hurts, but I'm fine." I'll probably have a bruise by the morning. The pain only temporarily blocks out thoughts about Rainbow Dash. Maybe I am in love with her. No. It's just a crush right now. I can honestly say it's the first time I've had a crush on something that's not human. If I still lived in Washington, I'd be breaking the law. It's a good thing I'm not there anymore.

"If you need anything, just ask me!" Pinkie says with a chipper tone.

"Alright, Pinkie. I think I'll be okay for now. Thanks for the food." I say. I finish my food and leave some money, along with a tip.

I head over to Carousel Boutique. My wardrobe's probably done by now. Maybe that will help me get Rainbow Dash off my mind.

"Hello, Mark." Rarity says once I enter. "Your timing is impeccable. I finished your wardrobe just an hour ago. I must say, your proportions are the most difficult I've ever had to deal with."

"Are you saying you didn't like it?"

"Not at all. Rainbow Dash isn't the only pony that likes challenges." I guess I was wrong about being able to escape thoughts of Rainbow here.

A new thought comes to mind. "How am I going to get the clothes to my house?"

"I can take them there for you." Rarity says with a smile. "I may require some assistance, however…"

"I'd be glad to help." I say.

"Thank you, Mark. I was thinking of asking my younger sister to help us, actually."

"You've got a sister?"

"Mm-hmm. Her name is Sweetie Belle. She's just a filly."

"As in… A young pony?" Rarity nods. "Okay. I'm starting to learn your dialect."

"It must be difficult."

I nod. "Yeah. The hardest is probably having to remember all of it. I know mares are female. I already knew stallions were male. Fillies are young females. Colts are young males, I think."

Rarity nods. "You're correct on them all."

I pump a fist in the air. I only knew some of those because I dated someone that was obsessed with horses.


	16. Tangled Up in Blue

**A/N: Welcome to another chapter of Rebirth. I accidentally shot myself. To avoid making more than half of this chapter an Author's Note, I've put more information on it on a blog post I made on (titled 'Kentucky Derby, Prom, &amp; Recent Injury'). In other news, I've started another Twitter account. It's LesserKnownSong. It's just about advertising good songs that not many people know about. On a different note, I'm being forced to go into hiatus until further notice. My computer is little more than a paperweight with wi-fi. I can still write a bit, but my progress will be slowed down greatly until I get a new computer. I can't even get my computer fixed.**

**Kyguy - You're just going to have to keep on reading to find that out.**

Rarity follows me to my house. She takes about a third of the clothes with her magic. I have to use good old manual labor to drag the other two thirds to my home.

I open the door. I really need to put a lock on it. I don't think anybody here would steal, but I can never be too certain. I know nopony I've met would steal from me.

"Quite the large home you have, Mark." Rarity says once she enters.

"Yeah. It's not the biggest house I've lived in, but it's definitely spacious. Even more without any furniture." I sigh. "Damn. I don't even have a dresser or anything to put the clothes in…"

"Really?" I nod. "We can't just leave these clothes on the floor."

"I know. I don't think I have enough money to get a dresser right now." I rub the back of my head. "I guess we could just leave the clothes on the couch for now. Could I stop by Carousel Boutique and work for some money?"

"I could just lend you some money. Or, I could give you a dresser for free."

I want to refuse, but I'm in need of it. "Thanks, Rarity. That's very generous of you." I flash her a smile.

Rarity smiles. "I'll get that dresser for you over here soon." She trots out.

Shortly after she leaves, there's a knock at the door. I open it to reveal Rainbow Dash. My stomach refuses to digest the butterflies that have just occupied it. "H-Hey, Rainbow."

"Hey, Mark." She says. "Why was Rarity in here?" I gesture to the large pile of clothes on the couch. "Oh. Is your thing charged?"

"I think so." I say. "I'll go get it." I move to my room and grab the iPod. It's charged enough to get a few hours out of it. I go back to the entrance. I should ask if she's a lesbian. I mean, if I'm seriously interested in her, I should at least know.

I let out a deep sigh. I feel like a teenager about to express his feelings towards a girl he likes. At least I think. I've never actually admitted love to anyone in my teenage years. Either way, it's actually pretty scary.

"Rainbow? I've had something on my mind for a while."

"Shoot."

"Alright, since I don't know how to say it, I'll just come out and ask. Are you a lesbian?" I ask, more blunt than a lead pipe. I've never been good at being subtle.

Rainbow Dash is caught off guard by my question. She recovers and just laughs. "I get that question all the time. You asking because of the mane?"

"And the coat color." I admit.

"That's a new one." Rainbow says with a toothy grin. "Nah. I'm not a lesbian. I'm straight, but I've experimented a bit."

It's my turn to be caught off guard. "That's… actually pretty hot." I admit.

"I was actually thinking you were gay."

"Really? Why?"

"You haven't gone out with anypony yet."

"Huh."

"So are you asking me out or something?"

"I... guess so?"

"Alright. There's a Wonderbolts show in a few days. Wanna go?"

"Yeah, sure." I say, despite not knowing what a Wonderbolt is. Is it a band or something? It sounds like it could be a band. That, or some sort of school mascot. Maybe a school band?

"You're gonna love it, Mark." She says, playfully punching my shoulder.

A black pegasus with a tinted blue mane in the shape of a mohawk lands behind her. "Rainbow, did you forget? We've got weather patrol."

Rainbow turns to the pegasus, who's seemingly ignoring me. "Sorry, Thunderlane. Yeah, I forgot." She turns to me. "I gotta go. See ya at the show."

"See ya." I say.

After Rainbow flies off, I chuckle softly to myself. That was the easiest date I've ever scored. I wasn't even trying to get one, either.

Wait. I'm going on a date with a pony. A _pony_.

Not a human.

I can feel a tightness in my chest. It's enough that I have to sit down. It's one of the worst laws to break back on Earth. I know, I'm not on Earth anymore, but… Damn. It's still a moral and ethical thing.

I breathe in and out in hopes to calm me down and stabilize my heart rate.

"I'm just going somewhere with a friend." I tell myself. "It's not a date. Just a trip with a friend. It's not a date."

"Why the fuck did I agree to that?" I tell myself again. "No… I didn't 'agree' to it. I asked her out." I hit my head against the wall. It hurts a lot. I feel my forehead. No blood. "Ugh… Okay, I just need to cancel the date."

But I've never canceled a date before. Would that be disrespectful to do that? I think so. Especially since it was arranged just a few minutes ago. Even if I decided to, how could I even contact Rainbow? I don't have a phone to call her with. I know she doesn't have one. There's probably not even any reception here.

Maybe I could write her a letter. I have no idea where she lives, though. I could ask Twilight. If anypony knows where everypony else lives, it would be Twilight. Or Pinkie. I get a weird vibe from that pink pony.

Dammit, mind, stay on track.

Okay… I'm going on a date with a horse. Not only that, but I'm attracted to said horse. Not only physically, but emotionally. It's very illegal to 'be with' an animal in Washington. Actually, if my memory serves me correct, a horse was involved in it. That doesn't soften the blow to this moral dilemma.

But I'm not on Earth anymore… Morals are probably different here. Does that mean I can 'be with' a pony? I might be able to. I don't know if I'd want to be, even if I can. I don't really care about appearances and focus more on personalities, but dating a pony is a bit of a stretch.

I think I'm forced to go on this date with Rainbow Dash. Where was it to? I don't even remember. A concert, or something. I can go to a concert.

Maybe I'm just overthinking this. Sure, Rainbow called it a date. Maybe it's not a romantic one? It has to be, though. Concerts can be romantic. What was the band called? Overbolt, or something. It sounds like a punk band. So it's probably not a romantic thing. At least, I doubt it is. I mean, has Sex Pistols ever made anything remotely romantic?

So it's not romantic. I feel a massive metaphorical weight being lifted off my shoulders.

I sit on the couch and look out the window. The blue sky quickly changes into overcast. It looks like it's about to rain soon. How'd the sky do that?

I think that black pegasus said something about the weather. Weather patrol, I think. So pegasi can manipulate the weather? That's pretty damn cool. Pretty much any creature with wings is lucky. So are the ponies with horns. I mean, damn. Magic.

Earth ponies seem to have nothing special. There's got to be something to kind of balance out the powers, or whatever. Maybe they're stronger. Applejack can knock all the apples off a tree. I could only knock one down with a running start. AJ didn't even have to take a step. Yeah, earth ponies are probably stronger than unicorns and pegasi.

I stand back up. I open the door and walk outside. Sure, it's overcast and will probably rain soon, but I lived in Seattle for most of my life. I'm used to the rain. I think I've seen more rainy days than sunny days.

* * *

I wander around Ponyville. I'm mostly out to look for a bar. After an hour, I couldn't find one. There might be one in Canterlot. I think I have enough money for a ticket.

It would also give me an excuse to find Princess Celestia and Princess Luna and talk to them again. I've never talked to them at the same time, and I'd like to see how they act together. I'd like to see how a good relationship between siblings is. I mean, I know Princess Luna attacked Princess Celestia, but that was a millennium ago. And from how she acted around me, I'm assuming she's changed for the better since then.

At least, I'm assuming the two Princesses have a good relationship. I'd like to see one. I've never even had much of a relationship with my brother, what with him being in the Canadian Army and practically living in Iraq. It's a damn shame I won't be able to make our relationship any better. Unless Epona gets kind enough to bring him here. I don't think that'll happen. I doubt I'll ever see a human again.

I reach into my pocket and pull out my wallet. I take out the money I had. $53 were inside. In a world with a different kind of currency, I don't need Earth's money. I'll keep this on me just in case I'm desperate for it. Maybe for a fire, or something. It probably won't do much to help me in that case.


	17. Message from the author

**Due to major inconveniences, I'm going to have to move Rebirth to . My laptop is nearly unusable. I can barely use it for five minutes without it blue screening and restarting, so I'm forced to use my home desktop. Because I live with other people, I can't use it every moment of the day, so I can't write as much as I want to. I'm moving Rebirth to FiMFiction because it's far more user-friendly, both for authors and readers, at least in my opinion. I am RattPitt on FiMFiction. Rebirth will arrive there soon.**


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